As part of a £2.7m upgrade Manchester Oxford Road station, Network Rail have installed new ticket barriers giving passengers a smoother transition on journeys across the centre of the city.
The barriers have features such as ticket readers, smart and contactless card readers and QR code readers, so they are well adapted to process any type of ticket, be it on paper, pass or mobile phone.
There is also a wider accessible barrier for those in wheelchairs, and those that are carrying cases or pushing buggies.
The original ticket office window has also been moved and is now at the front of the station.
Manchester Oxford Road is the third busiest in the city and sees thousands of people pass through the station every day, from commuters during the week, to day trippers and shoppers at the weekends.
Since 2009, the grade II listed station has been at the centre of plans to upgrade it, to increase capacity and sort out the infamous bottleneck outside the station, as a great number of passenger trains use the 5 platforms on a daily basis.
Network Rail is working in collaboration with Manchester City Council, The Department of Transport and train companies to improve the station and the services that it currently offers to passengers.
“I am really pleased we've been able to make these much needed upgrades at Manchester Oxford Road station. We're committed to making the passenger experience at the station better, and these new ticket barriers and the relocated ticket windows will mean passengers can move more easily around the station”
Gaynor Quinn, sponsor for Network Rail
“Making sure our passengers have the best experience using our stations is really important to us. These new barriers and the relocated ticket windows will make it easier and more comfortable to use Manchester Oxford Road station.
“We would like to thank our customers and colleagues for their patience while we carried out this improvement work.”
A spokesperson for Northern
Automatic ticket gates rather than ‘ticket barriers’. Many stations do appear to staff them as barriers, which misses the point of the exercise. Hopefully this won’t be one of them.