Meet the new pay-as-you-go GWR touch smartcard

You can now effortlessly tap in and out of selected stations in a new pay-as-you-go travel area. Plus, get best value on the day of travel*, with all your train tickets and payments rolled into one using your GWR touch smartcard.

GWR card icon Paperless - leave the faff of tickets behind and just breeze through the barriers

GWR train iconAll train operators - valid on GWR, CrossCountry and Transport for Wales rail services in the pay-as-you-go area

GWR money iconBest value fares*, automatic payments - walk-up fares, plus Weekly Season ticket price capping

GWR Delay Repay icon Delay Repay notifications** - we’ll let you know if your journey was delayed and you’re eligible to claim Delay Repay

Ordering your pay-as-you-go smartcard

How to get pay-as-you-go if you don't have a GWR account

  1. Register for a GWR account
  2. Confirm your account
  3. Login to your GWR account or select 'GWR pay-as-you-go' when you're logged in
  4. Enter your details and submit your form
  5. You will receive your pay-as-you-go smartcard within five working days

How to get pay-as-you-go if you already have a GWR account

  1. Login to your GWR account or select 'GWR pay-as-you-go' when you're logged in
  2. Choose if you want to order a new smartcard or add pay-as-you-go to an existing smartcard from the dropdown menu
  3. Enter your details and submit your form
  4. You will receive your pay-as-you-go smartcard within five working days
    1. If you added pay-as-you-go to an existing smartcard, you will normally be able to use pay-as-you-go within two hours

How to get pay-as-you-go if you already use a Flexi Season ticket on your GWR smartcard

If you use a Flexi Season ticket on a GWR smartcard, we recommend ordering a new smartcard for pay-as-you-go journeys.

  1. Login to your GWR account or select 'GWR pay-as-you-go' when you're logged in
  2. Choose ‘New GWR PAYG Smartcard’ from the dropdown menu
  3. Enter your details and submit your form
  4. You will receive your pay-as-you-go smartcard within five working days

Bristol PAYG map 2022

Download a high-resolution map. (PDF, 402 KB)


*Get the best value on walk-up fares for the day of travel, plus Weekly Season ticket price capping applied to end-to-end journeys between two stations over a Monday – Sunday 7-day week. Excludes Advance Single tickets. For more details, see How much will I be charged using pay-as-you-go below.

**If your journey with GWR is delayed by 15 minutes or more you can claim compensation under our Delay Repay scheme. If your journey with CrossCountry is delayed by 30 minutes or more you can claim compensation under their Delay Repay scheme.


Frequently asked questions

  • What is pay-as-you-go (PAYG)?
  • Where can I travel using pay-as-you-go?
  • How much will I be charged using pay-as-you-go?
  • Can I break my journey using pay-as-you-go?
  • Can I claim compensation for delayed journeys using pay-as-you-go?
  • How do I check the fare charged for my journey?
  • How do I update my payment card details?
  • How soon after I travel will my account or card be charged?
  • What happens if payment for pay as you go fails?
  • What is a continuous payment authority?
  • Setting up pay-as-you-go
  • Setting up for auto Delay Repay notifications
  • Add your Railcard
  • Can I use cash to load credit to my pay-as-you-go card?

Full pay-as-you-go terms and conditions


  • Terms & conditions