'Tories only know price and profit - not the real value ticket offices have'

26 August 2023 , 21:05

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Train station ticket offices face closure (Image: Maureen McLean/REX/Shutterstock)

The plan to shut virtually every ticket office in the country is not just a disaster for RMT members working on stations or vulnerable passengers who need assistance. It encapsulates the decline in this country under this Tory Government.

It seems hellbent on taking away everything of value the country has to offer and either giving it to the super-rich in the form of profit or throwing it in the bin. Our high streets are bare, with banks, post offices, pubs and community facilities boarded up. And now they are intent on closing our rail ticket offices and de-staffing stations.

The Tories only know price and profit, not the real value to our people and communities. It should really be a source of national shame that a respected charity like The Guide Dogs for the Blind Association has felt compelled to condemn the proposals. Penny Hefferan, who is a guide dog user, recently spoke affectionately of RMT members at stations who regularly assist on her travels.

However, as guide dogs are specifically trained to find ticket offices, once that focus point goes there will often be no staff present – and then Penny will struggle to source mobile teams either at the station or through an app. Ticket office closures are not just an attack on thousands of station staff who are due to lose their jobs if the proposals in full go ahead. They are a cowardly and disgusting attack on some of the most vulnerable people in society.

A sign of things to come (Maureen McLean/REX/Shutterstock)

Ticket machines are predominantly not designed to be used by the visually impaired unaided and blind passengers have shown on social media that they cannot operate the systems without station staff assistance. Henshaws, a sight loss charity based in Greater Manchester, has said if ticket offices close, it will leave disabled people in a “dire” situation and “erode the independence of our service users who really do rely on these ticket offices to get around”.

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Similar concerns have been raised by other disabled groups, pensioners’ organisations and women travelling alone at unsocial hours. They know that de-staffed stations will become an inaccessible and hostile environment, with an increase in crime and anti-social behaviour. These groups will simply feel they cannot use the railway network again.

All passengers in our communities should feel safe and secure, and be able to use an accessible railway network that works in the interests of our people – and not the privateers. The Government must listen to the people on this issue and ensure we keep our ticket offices open and our stations staffed.

Mick Lynch