Consultations have opened on proposed changes to the way ticket offices operate at the majority of railway stations across England.
Rail Delivery Group has produced a summary of the proposed changes, including a Q&A, here. This states that staffed stations will remain staffed, either directly or through roving mobile teams, more staff will be available overall to provide face-to-face help, and that Passenger Assist activities will not be affected.
Given community rail’s role to provide a voice for communities on local rail services, Community Rail Network is encouraging community rail partnerships and station groups to study the proposals and consider what they mean to passengers and communities in your area(s).
Individual train operators have published plans on how they envisage implementing the proposed changes, and we encourage you to review those plans in detail and engage with them directly. You may already have received details on the proposals from your usual community rail or communications/media contact. If not, check your train operator website for information.
Outside of London, the public consultations on the proposals are being led by Transport Focus, and each train operator has a dedicated e-mail address for responses on this issue, available here. In and around London, contact London TravelWatch here.
Passengers can respond online as to how they might be impacted by changes to their local station here, or send postal responses to the freepost address RTEH-XAGE-BYKZ, Transport Focus, PO Box 5594, Southend on Sea, SS1 9PZ. If people need assistance to provide their feedback, they can also contact Transport Focus by phone on 0300 123 2350.
The proposals affect the 974 stations which have a Department for Transport-controlled train operating company as the lead operator. They exclude stations operated by the Elizabeth Line, London Overground, Merseyrail, North Yorkshire Moors Railway Company, Transport for Wales, TfL, Transport for Greater Manchester, and Transport Scotland.
The deadline to respond to consultations has been extended to 1 September 2023.
Should you have any queries regarding the consultation process, get in touch with your usual train operator contact, or your regular contact within the Community Rail Network team.
