SURREY County Council is pressing for Oyster-style ticketing for all public transport to be rolled out.
South West Trains is bidding with First Group to renew its rail franchise from June 2017 and the hope is the new operator will introduce a smart system that also allows passengers to pay for bus journeys, too.
Other improvements the authority wants to help with to tackle a potential 40 per cent rise in passenger demand county-wide by 2043 include:
• Improved rail access to Heathrow Airport
• New Guildford stations at Park Barn and Merrow, serving the research park, university and homes
• A new track layout at Woking, known as grade separation, to boost capacity
• Better services to London from Camberley, Bagshot and Frimley.
Surrey is also backing the Crossrail 2 project and put forward a case for the proposed railway to be extended to Dorking and Woking.
Mike Goodman, Surrey County Council’s cabinet member for environment and planning, said: “Oyster-style technology is the way forward, making travel simpler and easier for passengers using different types of transport.
“But with rail passenger demand soaring and Surrey’s economy packing a £37billion annual financial punch, we also need investment in infrastructure and extra capacity, which is why we are pushing for new stations, a better link from the county to Heathrow and Crossrail 2 that would also bring benefits across the South East.”