Oyster readers begin accepting National Rail ITSO smart cards

UK: Passengers using the Key smart card issued by train operator Southern and its parent rail and bus company Go-Ahead can now buy tickets to London including weekly, monthly or annual Travelcards which are valid for unlimited travel on public transport within Greater London. The official launch by Transport Minister Baroness Kramer on September 17 builds on the £65m ‘ITSO on Prestige’ project to adapt Transport for London’s proprietary Oyster smart card technology to read cards meeting the open ITSO standards which the Department for Transport requires train operating companies to use.