‘Extreme concern’ over Somerset rail ticket office closure plans

Somerset councillors are "extremely concerned" by plans to close ticket offices at every railway station in England.

Train operators across England launched a consultation in early-July over plans to close all staffed ticket offices at every railway station, as part of a wider programme of modernisation. Residents, councillors and one prospective parliamentary candidate have criticised the proposals, arguing it would discriminate against disabled or vulnerable passengers and put tourists off from visiting Somerset^[1].

Members of the public have until September 1 to put their views across, with the results of the consultation expected to be published before Christmas^[2]. The rules governing ticket offices and the sale of tickets were agreed during the privatisation of British Rail in the mid-1990s, where the franchise model of different routes being served by different operators came into being.

In the mid-1990s, 82 per cent of all tickets were sold at ticket offices - a number which has now declined to 12 per cent today. With train operator revenue remaining at 30 per cent below the pre-pandemic^[4] levels (due to changing commuter habits and reservations about leisure travel), train companies have been looking to re-skill ticket office staff, allowing them to remain publicly visible while saving money.

Transport campaigner David Redgewell raised the issue when the full council met in Bridgwater^[5] on Wednesday afternoon (July 26). He said: "The council needs to object to the booking office closures on the grounds of hardship to passenger with reduced mobility and need assistance to travel, including partially sighted passengers and those who are digitally excluded [e.g. those without smartphones].

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"Ticket offices are able to sell a full range of tickets, passes and cards not available from ticket machines - including bus and rail integrated tickets, ferry tickets to the Channel Islands, the Isle of Man and mainland Europe, discounted wheelchair tickets, and tickets on the private steam railway network, such as the West Somerset Railway.

"They are essential in making sure passengers pay the cheapest fare in this cost of living crisis." Somerset's railway stations are primarily served by two different operators - Great Western Railway (GWR) and South Western Railway (SWR).

GWR operates services between Bristol Temple Meads and Exeter St. David's via Weston-super-Mare^[7], Highbridge^[8] and Burnham^[9], Bridgwater and Taunton^[10] (and will shortly serve the planned new stations at Wellington and Cullompton^[11]). It also operates services between Taunton and London Paddington via Castle Cary^[12], Bruton^[13] and Frome^[14] (with a new station to serve Langport and Somerton currently being mooted^[15]), as well as those between Bristol and Weymouth^[16] via Yeovil^[17] Pen Mill and Bath^[18] Spa.

SWR operates services between Exeter St. David's and London Waterloo via Crewkerne^[19], Yeovil Junction and Templecombe^[20] - with the long-term prospect of services calling at a new Chard Parkway station near Tatworth^[21]. There are currently staffed ticket offices at every Somerset railway station except for Bruton, Highbridge & Burnham and Weston Milton.

However, the ticket offices are not always open seven days a week - with the offices at Crewkerne and Frome being closed on Sundays and only opening during the mornings on the other days of the week. Some stations, such as Yeovil Pen Mill, currently lack ticket machines - meaning passengers have to either purchase long in advance of travel (since they cannot collect tickets at the station) or must purchase on the train after boarding.

Numerous Somerset stations also have limited disabled access, with Bruton and Castle Cary lacking lifts or accessible bridges between their platforms - leaving wheelchair users dependent on staff to help them across via ramps. Councillor Mike Rigby, portfolio holder for transport and digital, responded: "I am extremely concerned by any changes that might impact on the ability of people to have fair and equitable access to rail services and all associated fare products.

"I'm pleased that the consultation has been extended until September 1. The idea that you can run a national consultation on closing every ticket office in England over three weeks in the summer - the phrase 'it's no way to run a railway' has never been more apt.

"Our draft response to the consultation details these concerns and asks how the operators intend to address these important issues as they develop." The Taunton Deane Liberal Democrats^[22] have organised a separate petition specifically against the closure of Taunton's "kind, valued and supportive" ticket office, which has already attracted 450 signatures.

Gideon Amos - the party's candidate for the new Taunton and Wellington constituency^[23] - said the train companies' plans to disperse staff around the concourse to help with passenger queries would not prove helpful. He said: "The idea that you have to roam around Taunton station hoping to find someone who can help you buy your ticket is just awful.

"This kind of public service is what makes our country and communities stronger and we must fight to keep it. This is a big issue affecting towns and cities across the UK, not just Taunton."

David Northey, chairman of Travel Watch SW and a recently retired Great Western Railway manager, told a public meeting held in Taunton on July 25: "People are still making complex or unfamiliar journeys and still need help to get the right ticket. We’re a tourist region and a significant number of visitors who aren’t at all familiar with the area walk up and buy tickets at the office - many, many thousands each year."

Gemma Evans, a wheelchair user, argued that automatic ticket machines were not user-friendly to many people with disabilities. She said: "I’d love to put the people behind this scheme in a wheelchair for a day and see how they cope."

To give your response to the consultation, please write to RTEH-XAGE-BYKZ, Transport Focus, PO Box 5594, Southend on Sea, SS1 9PZ or email the following addresses by September 1:

• [email protected] for stations served by Great Western Railway
• [email protected] for stations served by South Western Railway

References

1. ^{^} Somerset (www.somersetlive.co.uk)
2. ^{^} Christmas (www.somersetlive.co.uk)
3. ^{^} Taunton motorists face weeks of disruption as latest roadworks begin (www.somersetlive.co.uk)
4. ^{^} pandemic (www.somersetlive.co.uk)
5. ^{^} Bridgwater (www.somersetlive.co.uk)
6. ^{^} here (bit.ly)
7. ^{^} Weston-super-Mare (www.somersetlive.co.uk)
8. ^{^} Highbridge (www.somersetlive.co.uk)
9. ^{^} Burnham (www.somersetlive.co.uk)
10. ^{^} Taunton (www.somersetlive.co.uk)
11. ^{^} the planned new stations at Wellington and Cullompton (www.somersetlive.co.uk)
12. ^{^} Castle Cary (www.somersetlive.co.uk)
13. ^{^} Bruton (www.somersetlive.co.uk)
14. ^{^} Frome (www.somersetlive.co.uk)
15. ^{^} a new station to serve Langport and Somerton currently being mooted (www.somersetlive.co.uk)
16. ^{^} Weymouth (www.somersetlive.co.uk)
17. ^{^} Yeovil (www.somersetlive.co.uk)
18. ^{^} Bath (www.somersetlive.co.uk)
19. ^{^} Crewkerne (www.somersetlive.co.uk)
20. ^{^} Templecombe (www.somersetlive.co.uk)
21. ^{^} the long-term prospect of services calling at a new Chard Parkway station near Tatworth (www.somersetlive.co.uk)
22. ^{^} Liberal Democrats (www.somersetlive.co.uk)
23. ^{^} the new Taunton and Wellington constituency (www.somersetlive.co.uk)