Travellers heading to Stansted Airport will finally be able to use contactless payments for train journeys from next month, after long-delayed approval was given to extend London’s contactless system.
The lack of contactless payments on the railway to Stansted Airport has often caught travellers out, as they were unaware they needed to buy a conventional ticket, and were often hit with fines when arriving at the airport. Warning signs were added at Liverpool Street ticket barriers to try to reduce the problem while waiting for contactless payments to be enabled on the service.
Originally expected to go live in December 2025, software problems delayed the launch. For pay as you go with contactless to work correctly, train company fares must be fully integrated with TfL’s fare system. During testing, the system identified issues affecting journeys on Greater Anglia services, and in the end, it was decided to delay the rollout at some stations.
The problems have been fixed, and from Sunday 8th March 2026, Greater Anglia will accept pay as you go contactless ticketing at 20 additional stations.
The extension of contactless ticketing will cover key commuter and airport routes to Southend Victoria, Witham and Stansted Airport, with stations such as Southend Airport, Chelmsford, Harlow Town and Bishop’s Stortford all set to benefit. The recently opened Beaulieu Park station is also included.
Pay as you go contactless will be accepted at the following additional 20 Greater Anglia stations:
- Billericay
- Beaulieu Park
- Bishop’s Stortford
- Chelmsford
- Harlow Mill
- Harlow Town
- Hatfield Peverel
- Hockley
- Ingatestone
- Prittlewell
- Rayleigh
- Rochford
- Roydon
- Sawbridgeworth
- Stansted Airport
- Southend Victoria
- Stansted Mountfitchet
- Wickford
- Witham
- Southend Airport
Greater Anglia’s Managing Director, Martin Beable, said: “We are pleased to be able to confirm that pay as you go contactless ticketing will be introduced at a further 20 stations from 8 March, making travel across our network simpler and more flexible for customers.
“This extension is another important step in modernising ticketing on the railway, allowing passengers to tap in and out and pay for the journeys they make, while improving the overall experience for those travelling into and out of London.”
The introduction of contactless ticketing at these stations forms part of a wider programme to simplify fares and ticketing across the rail industry, delivered in partnership with the Department for Transport and Transport for London (TfL).
Note that people with railcard discounts or concession rates will still find their existing tickets are likely to be cheaper than contactless tickets, although those concession rates will eventually be added to contactless tickets.
