McNulty Report - ticket office closures, increased fares? (merged topics)

[whole diary]

[BandHcommuter]

I am always amazed that a place such as Hungerford has no ticket office.  Does not even have any station building.  If anyone wants to see what the future might be like take a trip in a DOO^▸ (Driver-Only Operation (that is, trains which operate without carrying a guard)) turbo from Reading to Bedwyn.

Based on my own experience, I like the reassurance of knowing that stations and trains I use each day are staffed, but I can understand the Mcnulty study questioning the extent and value of the staffing which is provided.

I've just completed my fourth round trip between Westbury and Paddington this week. This evening was the first occasion this week (of 8 journeys) when my ticket has been checked on the train. The only other evidence (in terms of customer contact) that there was a guard on any of the other trains were the PA^▸ (Public Address (broadcast loudspeaker announcements) or Passenger Assist (railway staff providing physical assistance to passengers with mobility issues), depending on context) announcements, which could possibly be automated. I buy an annual season ticket by post, so that's 500 passenger journeys for which a station ticket office is not required.

Regarding stations, there are bus stops in urban areas which are far busier than some of the stations mentioned. Perhaps the train operators should consider what the real business case is for maintaining station facilities and staffing any more than a well-used bus stop (or tram stop or DLR^▸ (Docklands Light Railway) station etc.). Simplify fares and ticketing, and the case could become more compelling.

[willc]

how much money would be saved if these people were not employed to do such studies

I don't think they have actually done anything that might be considered studying - eg visiting any of the Cotswold Line stations mentioned early of a morning. The notion that machines could achieve the throughput needed is laughable, given the sheer number of people who really haven't a clue which ticket they need. Transaction time required? How long is a piece of string? Or they will just get on the trains without a ticket...

[6 OF 2 redundant adjunct of unimatrix 01]

maybe im over simplifying here... but doesn't cutting jobs when there are no jobs = more people on job seekers and less money going into shops?

they should open more ticket offices to get people into work

[Electric train]

maybe im over simplifying here... but doesn't cutting jobs when there are no jobs = more people on job seekers and less money going into shops?

they should open more ticket offices to get people into work

Government mantra ................ the private sector will provide jobs

[Super Guard]

how much money would be saved if these people were not employed to do such studies

Or they will just get on the trains without a ticket...

But you forget the Guard can sell them a ticket.... oh they went too...

[devon_metro]

maybe im over simplifying here... but doesn't cutting jobs when there are no jobs = more people on job seekers and less money going into shops?

they should open more ticket offices to get people into work

Government mantra ................ the private sector will provide jobs

The railways are private sector 

[6 OF 2 redundant adjunct of unimatrix 01]

almost some kind of causality loop going on lol  i should lay off the doctor who!

[James Vertigan]

Article in last night's Evening Standard about station staff cuts.

I believe the list in this article just covers London and the surrounding areas, so there may be a fuller list somewhere.

One of the stations of note which is on the list of proposed staff cuts is the part time staffed FGW^▸ (First Great Western) station (and my local in London) Acton Main Line.

http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-23983762-price-hikes-and-safety-fears-over-unstaffed-stations.do

[Tim]

The thing that concerns me about these cuts is that for many of the stations listed by the "no more micro managment" government the TOCS themslelves are against the cuts, presumably because they have the sense to appreciate the implications for customer service, ontrain staff numbers and revenue collection.

[rogerw]

Nice to see Folkestone Harbour included in the list.  When did it last see a scheduled passenger train?

[Tim]

Nice to see Folkestone Harbour included in the list.  When did it last see a scheduled passenger train?

2001. 

It continued to recieve the orient express trains until 2009 when NR^» (Network Rail - home page) took away the track.

[Brucey]

I also find it amusing how Hampshire has been abbreviated to Hamps, instead of Hants.  And how Hilsea is at risk of losing its ticket office ... when it hasn't had one for years.

[Electric train]

Not very good journalism
Cookham is in Surrey
and
Furze Platt is in kent

Henley on Thames is in Berkshire

Reading West is in Buckinghamshire


 

[JayMac]

And does anyone know of Swanick and Whitchirch stations in Hamps?

Oh, and Woollwich Dockyard?

 

[paul7575]

Presumably all that's happened here is that someone from the TSSA^» (Transport Salaried Staffs' Association - about) has finally got round to putting out tailored briefings to every media outlet in the land, about an aspect of McNulty's report that no-one ever got as far as reading before - hence the line in some news articles about there being a 'secret list'. 

The wording, on page 208, following a bit of a preamble, is:

Taking all these factors into account, the Study recommends that TOCs^▸ (Train Operating Company) should consider

.. the closure of all Category E station ticket offices;

.. reducing the opening hours at Category D station ticket offices;

etc etc...

I've emboldened 'consider', because I reckon there are two completely different interpretations, one would be to consider closing all Cat E stations, in one fell swoop, but the other is to consider each of the Cat E stations one by one, which I recall is exactly what the likes of SWT^▸ (South West Trains) have done only recently.   

I kept a copy of SWT's last proposals for ticket office closures' as they were challenged at length at the time.  For Swanwick, which I use regularly, the times were as follows:

SWANWICK   
Before   
M/F 06:00-18:15   
Sat  07:15-15:00   
Sun 10:00-14:30

Asked for    by SWT
M/F  06:00-18:15   
Sat  07:15-14:00   
Sun  CLOSED

Hardly the end of the world, and even big bad SWT never proposed full closure of Swanwick.

Paul

PS - a 'secret list' of stations by Category can be found here, if people are wondering, please destroy after reading... 

http://www2.dft.gov.uk/pgr/rail/passenger/stations/betterrailstations/pdf/partd.pdf