A transport union has contacted Conservative members of parliament asking them to oppose plans to close most railway ticket offices in England.
The Transport Salaried Staffs' Association (TSSA) sent letters to Conservative MPs who took part in the Westminster Hall debate on the future of the ticket offices on Wednesday 13 September. Politicians from right across the political spectrum have scrutinised the government's plans and a cross-party awareness has emerged that closure of the offices is both impractical and unsafe. The union has urged Conservative members who oppose the plans to speak out.
Three Tories expressed considerable concerns over the plans.
Anthony Mangnall, MP for Totnes, said that ‘we need people in our ticket offices so that we can ask for advice and guidance, how to get about, and how to navigate the system, which is so badly orchestrated for those buying tickets online'. Stockton South MP Matt Vickers said that nearly a quarter of all tickets sold at what he called his ‘brilliant little train station' were bought at the ticket office by people who are often the most vulnerable.
Sir John Hayes, MP for South Holland and The Deepings, was concerned that people could become isolated. He suggested that government plans would have the effect of ‘stripping life of human interactions and connections between people… and in doing so we are unpicking the threads that bind us together and make up the tapestry of civilised life'.
TSSA Interim General Secretary Peter Pendle said:“MPs will know from engaging with their constituents that the public are against these plans which will make our railways less accessible and less safe. It is good to see Conservative MPs waking up and realising that the government's plans will have a detrimental impact on the most vulnerable people in our society.
“Every MP recognises the importance of their own local ticket office and feels that their station deserves to be saved. No one wants their own constituents to bear the brunt of these cuts which will affect the most vulnerable in society. We now need MPs to see sense and urge Sunak's government to scrap these foolish proposals in their entirety.
“We need members of Parliament from across all parties come together to oppose these plans. We must now focus on using our railways to build up our communities, jobs and local economies.”
