๐Ÿ‡ฌ๐Ÿ‡ง London ยท Getting around

Transport and the shape of the city in London

Contactless payment, automatic fare caps and a zone system that quietly sets your rent as well as your commute.

Get started in London

The thing people get wrongYou do not need an Oyster card to start. Tapping the same contactless card or phone for every journey caps your spend automatically, daily and Monday to Sunday, so a short or irregular week costs less than any pass. A monthly or annual Travelcard on Oyster only wins if you commute every single week: the monthly is priced at 3.84 times the weekly cap, while a calendar month of maxed-out weekly caps comes to about 4.3 times.

Indicative figures

  • Weekly cap, Zones 1โ€“2About ยฃ45Automatic with contactless, Monday to Sunday. Check TfL's fare finder for the exact figure and for Zones 1โ€“3.
  • Daily cap, Zones 1โ€“2About ยฃ9Higher for each extra zone.
  • Single bus fareยฃ1.75Frozen until November 2026, when a rise is expected. Free bus transfers within the hour.
  • Zone 1 tube singleAbout ยฃ3Contactless or Oyster; a little more at peak.
  • Congestion Chargeยฃ18/daySince January 2026; ULEZ is a separate ยฃ12.50.
  • Heathrow to central30 โ€“ 50 minElizabeth or Piccadilly line.

Checked . Ranges, not quotes โ€” your Insider confirms the current numbers in London before you commit to anything.

Paying for travel

Tube, bus, tram, DLR, Overground, Elizabeth line and most National Rail journeys inside London all accept contactless bank cards and phones, and Transport for London calculates the cheapest combination for you. Daily and Monday-to-Sunday caps apply automatically, provided you use the same physical card or device every time. Oyster still works and remains useful if you want to keep travel off a foreign card that charges conversion fees.

  • Tap in and out on rail; on buses and trams, tap in only.
  • Use one card or one device consistently, or the caps will not combine.
  • Buses have a flat fare, frozen at ยฃ1.75 until November 2026, when a rise is expected, with unlimited bus and tram transfers within an hour (the Hopper).
  • Peak fares apply on weekday mornings and evenings; a Zone 1 tube single is about ยฃ3, a little more at peak.
  • The daily cap for Zones 1โ€“2 is around ยฃ9 and the bus-only cap is three bus fares; TfL's single fare finder has the exact current caps for your zones.

The network, and what the zones mean

Zones run 1 to 9 outward from the centre, and fares, not distance, are what the boundaries govern. The Elizabeth line has reshaped eastโ€“west journeys and the Overground now runs under named lines rather than one orange tangle. Night services run on several tube lines and the Overground on Friday and Saturday nights, with a comprehensive night bus network the rest of the week.

  • Check the zone before the postcode โ€” a Zone 3 flat on a fast line often beats a Zone 2 one on a slow one.
  • National Rail commuter services from the London terminals cover much of the south-east and use the same contactless system inside the zones.
  • The TfL Go and Citymapper apps handle live disruption better than the printed map.

Driving, and why most people do not

Central London has a Congestion Charge, ยฃ18 a day since 2 January 2026, and electric cars now pay it too, at a 25 per cent discount through Auto Pay. The Ultra Low Emission Zone covers the whole of Greater London with a ยฃ12.50 daily charge for non-compliant vehicles. Residents' parking permits are issued by borough and are neither cheap nor guaranteed, and many new-build leases forbid applying for one at all. Between charges, permits and insurance, a car in Zone 1 or 2 is a considered luxury rather than a default.

  • Congestion Charge: ยฃ18 a day in the central zone, weekdays and part of the weekend.
  • ULEZ: ยฃ12.50 a day across all London boroughs if the vehicle does not meet the emissions standards.
  • Check the borough's parking permit rules before assuming you can keep a car.

Cycling, walking and airports

Segregated cycle superhighways have made commuting by bike genuinely viable across much of inner London, and Santander Cycles cover the centre for short hops. Heathrow is served by the Piccadilly line and the Elizabeth line, Gatwick and Stansted by fast trains from Victoria and Liverpool Street, and Luton and City by their own connections. Journey times to the outer airports are long enough that they belong in the decision about where you live.

  • Heathrow: Elizabeth line or Piccadilly line, both direct.
  • Gatwick: rail from Victoria or London Bridge; Stansted: rail from Liverpool Street.
  • London City is the fastest airport to reach from Canary Wharf and the east.