The change, which went live on Sunday 8th March, means those travelling to and from Stansted on Greater Anglia and Stansted Express trains no longer need to buy traditional paper tickets or book ahead.
The move brings Stansted in line with other major London airports including Heathrow and Gatwick which have accepted contactless payments for years. Now passengers can use their contactless debit or credit card or mobile payment platforms like Apple Pay and Google Pay to travel between the airport and central London including Liverpool Street station.
The Transport for London managed system automatically calculates the best available fare applying daily and weekly caps to ensure passengers never pay more than they need to. This means less queuing at ticket machines and less risk of overpaying particularly for visitors new to London’s transport network.
Can You Use Oyster Cards at Stansted?
The rollout at Stansted is part of a wider expansion with 20 additional stations across the southeast now included in the contactless network. For regular commuters and airport staff, the change has been welcomed as a time saver and a way to make journeys smoother.
However travellers should note that while contactless bank cards and mobile devices are now accepted Oyster cards are still not valid for travel to Stansted. Paper tickets will remain available for those who prefer them or do not have access to contactless cards.
The improvement is expected to make a real difference for the millions of passengers using Stansted every year. Airport officials hope the new system will encourage more people to use public transport easing congestion and making travel to and from the airport more convenient than ever before.
The Department for Transport and Greater Anglia have both said further expansions to the contactless system are planned with the aim of making travel across southeast England as seamless as possible for all passengers.
