Government orders U-turn on rail ticket office closures in England

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Plans for the mass closure of railway ticket offices in England have been scrapped after the government intervened following a public backlash.

Transport secretary Mark Harper told train operators on Tuesday to withdraw the proposals, which were part of a government-backed cost-cutting plan announced in July.

“The proposals that have resulted from this process do not meet the high thresholds set by ministers,” Harper said.

The U-turn came after two passenger watchdogs — Transport Focus and London TravelWatch — had lodged formal objections to the planned closures, which were opposed by unions, passenger lobby groups and disability charities, as well as some MPs.

The two groups received 750,000 responses to the public consultation launched by the industry. Transport Focus said it had received “powerful and passionate concerns about the potential changes”, while London TravelWatch said 99 per cent of the responses were opposed to closing stations.

“Despite improving on their original proposals, we don’t think the train companies have gone far enough to meet our concerns and those of the public. We cannot say with confidence that these proposals would improve things for passengers,” said Michael Roberts, chief executive of London TravelWatch.

Transport Focus said there remained “key issues that are critical to maintaining accessibility for all to the national network that remain unresolved”.

Last week, the House of Commons transport select committee warned the government that the proposals risked “excluding some passengers from the railway”. It also raised concerns over the public consultation process launched by the industry.

Rail companies had argued their plans to close virtually every ticket office in England were justified because the widespread adoption of digital ticketing meant they accounted for the sale of just 12 per cent of fares.

The train operators had been tasked with finding significant savings by the government following the collapse in passenger revenue during the pandemic and the subsequent fall in commuting.

Passenger revenues remain 30 per cent below pre-Covid level and the proposals were part of a wider push to cut costs by reducing headcount and modernising working practices, which has led to a long-running industrial dispute with unions.

The industry has been subsidised by the taxpayer ever since privatisation in the mid-1990s but it was in effect fully renationalised during the pandemic as part of a government bailout, leaving ministers in full control of its finances.

Senior railway executives privately expressed frustration at the U-turn. They questioned where other cost savings would now come from, given the government’s reluctance to increase the railway’s subsidy.

“These proposals were about adapting the railway to the changing needs of customers in the smartphone era, balanced against the significant financial challenge faced by the industry as it recovers from the pandemic,” said Jacqueline Starr, chief executive of the Rail Delivery Group, which represent the industry.

“While these plans won’t now be taken forward, we will continue to look at other ways to improve passenger experience while delivering value for the taxpayer.”