Consultation into railway ticket office closures granted extension

People concerned about the closure of hundreds of railway ticket offices across the country ^[1] have been given longer to share their views on the proposal. Five Leicestershire train stations could lose their ticket offices as part of a government plan to modernise rail services.

The proposal from the Rail Delivery Group, a body which represents private railway operators, was unveiled earlier this month and could see Hinckley, Loughborough, Market Harborough, Melton and Narborough all lose their railway ticket offices. A three week public consultation was then launched allowing to people to submit comments about the proposal.^[2]^[3]

This was set to conclude at midnight tonight (Wednesday, July 26) but the deadline has been extended by more than five weeks according to Transport Focus, the independent watchdog leading the consultation. More than 170,000 comments have been sent into the consultation already and now people have until Friday, September 1 to send in feedback.

Anthony Smith, chief executive of Transport Focus said: "This feedback is currently being logged and reviewed alongside individual train operator proposals. It is important that a diverse range of views from all parts of the community are heard in this consultation. New comments received will be read, considered and used in discussions with train companies in the coming weeks.”

Local rail provider East Midlands Railway (EMR)^[5] confirmed today it is will be extending the time available to respond to the consultation. It said it hopes "more people will have the opportunity to have their say" about the proposed changes and the responses will "shape final plans so that all customers are supported" as the railway moves into the "smartphone era."

On average, less than five per cent of all tickets sold for EMR trains are bought at ticket offices, the company said earlier this month. It added most of its passengers "choose to use" self-service ticket machines or buy tickets online. This figure sat at more than 80 per cent in the mid 1990s, according to the train company.^[6] Staff at the affected stations will move into "customer help roles" on station platforms and concourses, if the proposal is passed through. The local train provider said the move would offer "more face-to-face support" across the network.

But many Leicestershire residents have pushed back on the idea and have launched campaigns to save the ticket offices. John Rickerby, 81, from Littlethorpe, and his wife Jean, 79, told LeicestershireLive ^[7] they use the Narborough ticket office every week when taking a trip to Leicester. Both are worried about its potential closure.

Mr Rickerby, who uses a wheelchair,^[8] said: "There are hardly any buses that go into Leicester. I think there is one a day and if someone else is using the wheelchair space you can't really get on the bus. I can't use apps, my fingers aren't very good and it makes me sad I would be forced to use them. The government doesn't want to know. No one cares about you when you get past 80 - we aren't important anymore."

Jac Starr, CEO of the Rail Delivery Group,^[9] said earlier this month: "The ways our customers buy tickets have changed and it’s time for the railway to change with them. Our proposals would mean more staff on hand on to give face-to-face help with a much wider range of needs, from journey planning, to finding the right ticket and helping those with accessibility needs." People can submit their feedback by emailing their views to [email protected].

John Rickerby, 81, from Littlethorpe

References

^{^} closure of hundreds of railway ticket offices across the country (www.leicestermercury.co.uk)
^{^} Market Harborough, (www.leicestermercury.co.uk)
^{^} allowing to people to submit comments about the proposal. (www.leicestermercury.co.uk)
^{^} Junior doctors confirm more strike action amid pay dispute (www.leicestermercury.co.uk)
^{^} East Midlands Railway (EMR) (www.leicestermercury.co.uk)
^{^} to the train company. (www.leicestermercury.co.uk)
^{^} LeicestershireLive (www.leicestermercury.co.uk)
^{^} who uses a wheelchair, (www.leicestermercury.co.uk)
^{^} Jac Starr, CEO of the Rail Delivery Group, (www.leicestermercury.co.uk)