The consultation on railway station ticket office closures has been extended by six weeks with a new deadline of 1 September, allowing more residents to have their say.
Due to a significant decline in the use of ticket offices, with only around 1 in 10 transactions occurring at a ticket office in 2022/23 and the vast majority being sold online on via ticket machines, train companies are currently consulting on plans to modernise customer service across the railway network.
The proposals include plans for moving staff from behind the ticket office screens to more visible and accessible roles around stations. This will ensure multiskilled, customer-facing workforce that can provide a more personal service and support commuters better by covering a broader range of customer needs. By making staff more visible and accessible, they will be able to provide support to passengers where they most need it and help to those who cannot or do not want to use contactless or digital tickets.
The consultation had been due to finish on 26 July, but passengers will now have until 1 September to provide their feedback.
To make a submission, please go to: www.transportfocus.org.uk/train-station-ticket-office-consultation/.
In addition to the consultation, Nusrat is also inviting Wealden residents to share their views with her via a dedicated platform on her website to inform any decision-making impacting Wealden train stations following the consultation.
To share your views, please go to: www.nusghani.org.uk/consultation-railway-station-ticket-offices.
Nusrat Ghani said: “Train travel is a key form of transport for Wealden residents, and I am constantly campaigning for its improvements locally. I appreciate that the way people buy tickets have changed and this needs to be reflected in service provision at train stations. I understand that no station that is currently staffed would become unstaffed as a result of these changes and staff will be present to provide in-person assistance and accessibility support to those who cannot or do not want to use contactless or mobile tickets. If you would like to share your views on the matter, please do make use of the extension to the official consultation and you can also make a submission via my website to let me know your thoughts.”
