The consultation on train operator proposals to close the majority of railway ticket offices in England ends on Friday 1 September, following an extension granted on 26 July due mainly to unacceptable extreme short notice and accessibility issues.
With one week to go before the public consultation on the proposed changes to ticket offices ends, London TravelWatch and Transport Focus have received more than 460,000 responses considering issues such as whether the station will continue to be staffed, accessibility, the alternative options for buying tickets and whether closure will affect whether passengers will continue to be able to access facilities like lifts, waiting rooms and toilets.
Stephen Brookes, Disability Rights UK Rail Policy Adviser said ‘The consultation provides people with the opportunity to have their say on proposed closures to ticket offices and changes to how operators sell tickets at stations as It is a statutory requirement that the watchdogs and passengers are consulted, so it is vital that our members submit their views on this proposal as we know from many messages that no one wants these closures to proceed.’
Stephen reminds DR UK members and supporters that with a week still left to have your say, it’s not too late to submit a response about your local station.
Over the coming weeks, the two watchdogs will carefully analyse the train operator proposals and consultation responses before they report their decisions to Ministers on whether to support or object to the plans.