Ticket offices could eventually be closed at nearly every train station in England as part of new proposals unveiled today.
It’s believed that around three out of five stations currently have a staffed ticket office, but the Rail Delivery Group (RDG) is looking to change that moving forward, and has today unveiled plans to “bring station staff closer to customers” by moving them out of ticket offices and onto platforms and concourses instead.
The industry body has launched a 21-day public consultation, and is now asking passengers for their thoughts on the proposals.
The railway is proposing changes to how our staff help customers.
Our proposals mean staff on hand to give face to face help with a much wider range of needs, from journey planning, to finding the right ticket and helping those with accessibility needs.
— Rail Delivery Group (@RailDeliveryGrp) July 5, 2023
According to the RDG, the proposals would help to bring stations “up to date from the mid-90s”, which is when the rules on how to sell tickets were last reviewed, as this was “long before the invention of the smartphone” and back when an estimated 82% of all sales were from ticket offices, compared to just 12% on average today.
Bringing staff out from ticket offices would apparently allow the rail industry to “respond to that generational shift in customer behaviour” just like other similar industries and organisations have, the RDG says.
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The changes would also mean a more “visible and accessible staff presence overall” in stations during staffed hours.
Ticket offices could be closed at ‘nearly every’ train station in England / Credit: RDG
The proposed new “multi-skilled customer help roles” – which the RDG says are already in place at many stations nationwide – would apparently help to support better face-to-face interactions, and would mean previous ticket office staff are then able to help more customers across “a whole range of needs”.
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Ticket office facilities will remain open at the stations and interchanges considered by the RDG to be the “busiest”, but aside from this, the rest would be closed.
If the proposed changes are accepted, the RDG says closures would be “phased in gradually”.
Customers queuing at a local train station ticket office / Credit: RDG
In response to the RDG’s proposals unveiled today, Transport for the North (TfN) has raised a couple of concerns – with a spokesperson commenting acknowledging that while it “understands the way people buy tickets is changing” and that there “needs to be reform”, this should, however, be done in a “holistic” way that considers the needs of all station users and local communities.
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“We are concerned that the focus on ticket office staffing in isolation of wider investment could lead to disadvantaging certain passengers and communities,” the TfN spokesperson continued.
“We will be working with our partners on a robust response to the consultation using local evidence and knowledge.”
Featured Image – Network Rail
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Heartbreaking new figures show 35% of all children in the North West are living in poverty
Emily Sergeant
35% of all children in the North West are currently living in poverty, some heartbreaking new figures have revealed.
Some new research carried out to understand regional levels of child poverty, conducted by Loughborough University for the End Child Poverty Coalition, has sadly revealed over a third (35%) of all children in the North West are living in what is called ‘relative poverty’, after the cost of housing is considered – which is higher than the national average standing at 31%.
Over in the Lancashire authority of Pendle, this figure reaches 45%, making it the second highest rate of all local authorities in the country.
In Greater Manchester, both Oldham and Manchester join Pendle in the list of the 10 council areas with the highest child poverty rates in the UK, as well as Blackburn with Darwen, and Hyndburn, and to make matters worse, the North West features on the list more times than any other region nationwide.
Rusholme was identified as the Manchester area with the highest percentage rating – with more than half (51.3%) of all children there living in poverty.
88% of constituencies across the North West have a quarter of children in poverty.
This could lead to things like families being forced to use food banks, children going without warm clothes in winter, or living in cold or unsafe housing.
As a result of these shocking statistics being revealed, the End Child Poverty Coalition – which represents more than 135 organisations across the UK – is calling on the Government to meet its manifesto commitment to address these high levels of child poverty, not just in the North West but also across the rest of country.
“These figures should demonstrate to Government just how important it is to quickly address this so to prevent another generation of children from growing up in low-income families,” commented Rachel Walters, who is the End Child Poverty Coalition Manager.
“The Government’s strategy to tackle child poverty must invest in children in areas with higher levels of poverty, like the North West.”
Graham Whitham, who is a End Child Poverty Coalition spokesperson and the Chief Executive of Resolve Poverty, added: “No child should go without the things they need to be healthy and happy.
“The Government’s forthcoming national Child Poverty Strategy must demonstrate a clear ambition to ending child poverty in this country, backed by specific targets and immediate investment in social security.”
Featured Image – RawPixel
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Manchester’s ‘busiest’ road to close for annual safety checks this weekend
Emily Sergeant
Manchester’s ‘busiest’ road is set to close this weekend while annual safety checks are carried out, it has been confirmed.
As Manchester City Council looks to maintain and improve what is, by far, one of Manchester’s busiest and most-used roads, given the fact it is the main thoroughfare in and out of the city centre, it has been confirmed that Mancunian Way is set to close overnight this weekend for its annual inspection.
Carried out every year, the Council explains that these closures ensure that ‘vital’ safety inspections can be conducted to allow the major road to continue operating as normal.
The overnight closure will take place from 7-8 June.
From 5am on Saturday (7 June), Mancunian Way will be closed in both directions along its entire length, including all slip roads, between the Chester Road roundabout and Fairfield Street, and this will last until 7pm on Sunday (8 June), after which the road will be open to traffic again as normal.
In the meantime while the closures are underway, the Council assures that a signed diversion route will be in place via the north and eastern ring road sections – Trinity Way and Great Ancoats Street – and a local diversion route will be signed via Bridgewater Street, Whitworth Street West, Whitworth Street, and Fairfield Street.
Manchester’s ‘busiest’ road Mancunian Way is closing for annual safety checks this weekend / Credit: Pixabay
During this period there will also be a lane closure east/westbound at the Deansgate Interchange between 6:30-9:30am, and the inbound lane of Princess Road (heading towards Manchester) between 6:30am and 11:15am.
As is to be expected with these kinds of tasks, Councillors say they are preparing for a ‘level of disruption’ but are intending to keep it to a minimum.
“The annual inspection of the Mancunian Way is a vital job which ensures that the tens of thousands of daily users of this road can go about their journey in safety,” explained Councillor Tracey Rawlins, who is the Executive Member for Clean Air, Environment, and Transport.
“We do expect a level of disruption throughout this process so wherever possible we’d advise people to travel via public transport, or plan an alternate route ahead to avoid the work locations.
Emily Sergeant -
5th July 2023 
