Idea to close Worcestershire railway ticket offices slammed
One campaigner has said staff do a lot more than just sell tickets - including making sure passengers are safe and cleaning poo from platforms
Campaigners are warning older people and those with disabilities could lose their independence - if railway ticket offices are closed across Worcestershire.
An industry body's planning to shut offices at stations including Worcester and Malvern - insisting staff will be on platforms instead.
It’s understood Worcester Foregate Street, Leominster and Hereford would be unaffected, but other stations would be.
Natalie McVey from Malvern uses the trains regularly after giving up driving and said staff do more than just sell tickets.
“If travellers have disabilities such as a visual impairment, mobility issues or are on the autistic spectrum, they can face additional barriers to travelling safely,” she said.
“Ticket office staff assist with safe travel. I regularly talk to the staff at ticket office in Great Malvern. Believe me, they do not just sell tickets. As well as all of the things I've mentioned, they keep the station and platform areas clean and safe.
“Recently, I was hearing how they had to clean up broken glass and human excrement from the platform.
“Imagine if they hadn't been there and you were faced with that first thing on a Monday morning.
“Basically, as human beings, most of us want to be with other human beings in so many areas of our lives, whether that be banks, supermarkets, libraries or train stations. People are being reduced and sometimes removed.”
The plans to close hundreds of station ticket offices across England over the next three years, subject to consultation, were revealed earlier this month.
Under the proposals, it would see ticket office staff work on platforms and concourses. The Rail Delivery Group (RDG) say the changes would bring staff closer to customers.
They add that on average, 12 per cent of train tickets are bought from offices at stations, compared to 82 per cent in the mid-90s.
A consultation is currently underway to collect passengers' views, which runs until Wednesday 26 July.
A Department for Transport spokesperson said: "These industry-led consultations are about enhancing the role of station workers and getting staff out from behind ticket office screens and into more active, customer-facing roles that will allow them to better support all passengers.
"This is not about cutting jobs - no station which is currently staffed will be unstaffed as a result of these proposed reforms.
"We have been consistently honest about the need for our railways to modernise if they are going to survive. Reviewing the role of ticket offices - with the least busy selling only one ticket an hour - is a crucial part of this."