[News] Plans to close rail ticket offices in England scrapped

[Bozza]

Transport Secretary Mark Harper said the government had asked train operators to withdraw their proposals because they failed to meet high passenger standards.

However, a source told the BBC rail bosses were "furious", saying the original plans had been approved by the Department for Transport.

Plans to close rail ticket offices in England scrapped

The government tells train firms to ditch the controversial closures, sparking anger from rail bosses.

www.bbc.co.uk

 

[maresfield seagull]

Transport Secretary Mark Harper said the government had asked train operators to withdraw their proposals because they failed to meet high passenger standards.

However, a source told the BBC rail bosses were "furious", saying the original plans had been approved by the Department for Transport.

Plans to close rail ticket offices in England scrapped

The government tells train firms to ditch the controversial closures, sparking anger from rail bosses.

www.bbc.co.uk

Good

 

[Weststander]

Great news (of no action), vulnerable people very much need them. R4 You & Yours covered this in detail.

 

[Frutos]

Great news.

 

[beorhthelm]

wait, so the consultation was actually consultation, and not a predetermined schedule of closures?

 

[Guinness Boy]

Great news (of no action), vulnerable people very much need them. R4 You & Yours covered this in detail.

Not just the vulnerable. Had an issue collecting our rail tickets for Wolves away as the ticket machine wouldn't read the card I'd paid with. Lady at the ticket office sorted it out straight away. We talked about the closures and she did point out to me the irony that offices were being shut because people were buying online, and she'd just fixed a problem with my online tickets.

I'd only got them online because I 'split' them making them a lot cheaper. They can do that too at a manned ticket office. I didn't know but have since bought rail tickets in person where I can.

 

[Thunder Bolt]

Great news (of no action), vulnerable people very much need them. R4 You & Yours covered this in detail.

Visually impaired people had problems with ticket machines, so using the Disability Access as part of the protest helped, plus it helped wheelchair users because it meant small stations had someone nearby.
There was a huge response online, protesting about the closures. Photos every day of different locations showing a queue at ticket offices, proving that people did need a personal touch rather than machines, which, more often than not, were broken anyway.

 

[Mellor 3 Ward 4]

Excellent news.

Add that to the good news re Travel Cards last week.

 

[Rovert_Fugazi]

Brilliant news.

 

[Peacehaven Wild Kids]

This is what you get off machines. I tried to use my Railcard to get a couple of bob off a return to Three Bridges.

 

[The Clamp]

It’s good news.

Will we see a lot of unpopular decisions made by the Tory’s being U-Turned as we get closer to a general election?

 

[Cowfold Seagull]

Transport Secretary Mark Harper said the government had asked train operators to withdraw their proposals because they failed to meet high passenger standards.

However, a source told the BBC rail bosses were "furious", saying the original plans had been approved by the Department for Transport.

Plans to close rail ticket offices in England scrapped

The government tells train firms to ditch the controversial closures, sparking anger from rail bosses.

www.bbc.co.uk

Sanity prevails.

 

[Westdene Seagull]

Call me a cynic but is there a General Election not too far away ?

 

[The Clamp]

Call me a cynic but is there a General Election not too far away ?

Yep, it’ll be up to Labour (hopefully) to try and salvage a rail service out of what is left.

 

[Weststander]

Call me a cynic but is there a General Election not too far away ?

That'll swing it, the Tory's will gain a seat, up to 175

 

[GT49er]

Excellent news - but I'd prefer it if the rail companies had been told, not just asked. Wouldn't be surprised if half the time rail companies just said terribly sorry, we just haven't got the staff today/staff sickness, etc.

 

[Dibdab]

Excellent news - but I'd prefer it if the rail companies had been told, not just asked. Wouldn't be surprised if half the time rail companies just said terribly sorry, we just haven't got the staff today/staff sickness, etc.

This is all a government sham. The rail companies only did any of this because they were instructed to by Government and DFT during Covid to recover industry losses. As soon as its (shock horror) become clearly unpopular with the public with an election on the horizon the minister has thrown the operators under the bus and u turned. The government are currently funding the entire railway and taking the revenue. Everything rail companies currently do is by permission or instruction of the DFT/gov.

 

[jackalbion]

This is all a government sham. The rail companies only did any of this because they were instructed to by Government and DFT during Covid to recover industry losses. As soon as its (shock horror) become clearly unpopular with the public with an election on the horizon the minister has thrown the operators under the bus and u turned. The government are currently funding the entire railway and taking the revenue. Everything rail companies currently do is by permission or instruction of the DFT/gov.

Spot on!

 

[Guinness Boy]

This is all a government sham. The rail companies only did any of this because they were instructed to by Government and DFT during Covid to recover industry losses. As soon as its (shock horror) become clearly unpopular with the public with an election on the horizon the minister has thrown the operators under the bus and u turned. The government are currently funding the entire railway and taking the revenue. Everything rail companies currently do is by permission or instruction of the DFT/gov.

Surely not? Nationalisation by proxy on the watch of the hardest right government we've ever had? My, what a bunch of lying hypocrites they must be.

 

[Leekbrookgull]

We all know that removing ticket office staff on the pre text that these staff would cover platform duties was effectively the road to redundancy, pure and simple.