>The plans, which were put forward by train companies in a move to cut costs, sparked concern from unions and disability groups.
Not surprised. For the rail companies themselves, this was never just about ticket offices, it was a means to bypass the regulations which require them to maintain a staff presence at stations with them.
^(TLDR however they chose to float the idea publicly, it was about de-staffing stations)
This is the correct call.
From a diversity and inclusion perspective, I literally cannot think of a way to accommodate certain individuals needs without having face-to-face human interaction and support as an option.
Apart from the (very important) disability inclusion side of things, the ticket machines they want us to rely on are useless. The last 3 times I’ve had to use one (to print duo tickets I’d bought online but which they sometimes require to be printed for some reason), it hasn’t worked and the staff member on duty has pointed me towards the office to get it sorted.
They’d need to find a solution to that sort of thing before getting rid of the office. And I imagine they realised they can’t fix the machines.
I wouldn’t mind them closed if they actually had a plan in place… i.e.
E-tickets work at every station and not just a select few
Ticketing is simplified so it’s not a total confusing mess
Ticket prices are reduced with the closure savings (lol)
Northen has these touch screen ticket machines non that I’ve used have been calibrated correctly and many tickets aren’t available at machines a booth is amazing you get some one who helps you find the route the best tickets and even sells ones that aren’t available at the machines
No wonder only 1 in 10 tickets sold were through kiosks, the one in my town opens and closes when the worker wishes, never on time, and to add insult to injury the ticket machines are out of order most of the time too
I imagine that most of the ticket office staff have already planned their exit from the sector, I can’t imagine motivation is particularly high at the moment.
It would be ironic if the rail companies found themselves having to hire new staff to replace roles which they thought would be made redundant.
7 comments
>The plans, which were put forward by train companies in a move to cut costs, sparked concern from unions and disability groups.
Not surprised. For the rail companies themselves, this was never just about ticket offices, it was a means to bypass the regulations which require them to maintain a staff presence at stations with them.
^(TLDR however they chose to float the idea publicly, it was about de-staffing stations)
This is the correct call.
From a diversity and inclusion perspective, I literally cannot think of a way to accommodate certain individuals needs without having face-to-face human interaction and support as an option.
Apart from the (very important) disability inclusion side of things, the ticket machines they want us to rely on are useless. The last 3 times I’ve had to use one (to print duo tickets I’d bought online but which they sometimes require to be printed for some reason), it hasn’t worked and the staff member on duty has pointed me towards the office to get it sorted.
They’d need to find a solution to that sort of thing before getting rid of the office. And I imagine they realised they can’t fix the machines.
I wouldn’t mind them closed if they actually had a plan in place… i.e.
E-tickets work at every station and not just a select few
Ticketing is simplified so it’s not a total confusing mess
Ticket prices are reduced with the closure savings (lol)
Northen has these touch screen ticket machines non that I’ve used have been calibrated correctly and many tickets aren’t available at machines a booth is amazing you get some one who helps you find the route the best tickets and even sells ones that aren’t available at the machines
No wonder only 1 in 10 tickets sold were through kiosks, the one in my town opens and closes when the worker wishes, never on time, and to add insult to injury the ticket machines are out of order most of the time too
I imagine that most of the ticket office staff have already planned their exit from the sector, I can’t imagine motivation is particularly high at the moment.
It would be ironic if the rail companies found themselves having to hire new staff to replace roles which they thought would be made redundant.