South London commuters feel “angry” and “frightened” at the thought of their local train ticket office closing, and feel the move is a “greedy money-grabbing exercise”.
Last week, Southeastern Railway announced that it was considering closing ticket offices at 40 stations in its South London network.
The rail company said the stations targeted reportedly sell fewer than 50 tickets at their office windows daily and already have Pay As You Go services available.
The scheme aims to move staff out of ticket offices to make them more available to assist customers face-to-face and promote the rollout of self-service technology.
Victor Browning, 70, has lived in Bexleyheath for 16 years and said he uses the train three times a week to go “out and about”.
He said he feels commuters who are not “digitally minded” will struggle to buy tickets online or on machines.
“I think it’s all wrong,” he said. “It first started I think with Johnson when he started shutting the Tube ticket offices. That’s when it started and it’s just money-saving.”
Mr Browning added: “They said they’re going to put all the ticket office clerks out on the platform. If you want a ticket they will go, ‘Oh yeah, it’s in the machine,’ and I’ve seen on Facebook and different things that people say the machines are not working, and there’s no one there.
“So they’ve got to get on a train without a ticket.”
Southeastern said in a statement that they had seen a reduction of 63 million journeys in the past four years.
The rail company said they were open that there was a “cost saving element” to the proposals.
They said: “We want to make sure our railway is sustainable for the future and reduce the costs associated with running the railway noting that we are a public sector organisation dependent upon a taxpayer subsidy of over £1 million a day.”
An anonymous resident said she lives ten minutes from Bexleyheath and Barnehurst stations. The local said she is “frightened” by the thought of ticket offices in stations being closed late at night, and thinks the Bexleyheath station has suffered from a lack of investment over the years.
“I’ve got a Freedom Pass and a senior railcard, and there’s no facility on the machines to get the cheap tickets that you get over the counter,” she said. “You can’t do it, there’s no facility and they’re always breaking down.”
She added: “I think it’s just a greedy money grabbing exercise… The toilets have been out of order for two months and no one’s bothered because they don’t want to spend the money.”
The Southeastern website shows that all ticket types are available to buy online excluding Oyster top ups and cash payments. It also states that railcard discounts are available from ticket vending machines and on board trains.
A Southeastern spokesperon said: “We’d like to reassure customers in Bexleyheath and across South East London that closing ticket offices, if the proposals are approved, will not reduce the support available for people wanting to buy a ticket or seek travel advice at the station.”
They added: “All of our stations currently staffed will continue to be staffed – indeed at Bexleyheath the proposed staffing hours are longer than the ticket office opening hours now.”
Leah Eagles, 20, said she has lived in Bexleyheath her whole life. The local said she uses the train five days a week to get to work, and appreciates the concerns elderly commuters may have on not being able to apply discounts to tickets bought on machines.
“I just have Apple Pay, but I feel that older people who aren’t good at technology, they’re going to be affected.”
She added: “Obviously money’s tight. I travel every day and it’s a tenner. That’s £10 off my pay. So even if you’re not just going to work, it’s a bit spenny.”
Nanth Sab, 63, said he and his aunt live within walking distance of Bexleyheath station. He said he uses the train four days a week, while his aunt uses it to travel several times a month.
“My auntie is 74. We are old people, we are not very good with technology. I am 63, I am able to change but we like to talk to people.
“I’m from Sri Lanka but I love the culture of talking to people… I don’t want to talk to the machine.”
He added: “You don’t get any interaction. The interaction between the human and the machine is totally different. So I’m feeling a little bit down.”
Mr Sab said he was “angry” when he learned of the proposed changes. He also said he feels that Southeastern is not utilising their funds properly, given the cost cutting aspect of the changes.
He added:“I know they need to cut corners, but they shouldn’t cut corners with people’s feelings.”
The proposed changes would also add ‘travel centres’ to the fourteen busiest stations operated by Southeastern, giving travel information and ticketing solutions to commuters.
A Southeastern said that the majority of customers at most of its London stations, including Bexleyheath, use Pay As You Go services and never need to purchase tickets at the station.
They added: “However, we absolutely recognise that for some people, continuing to buy tickets and accessing support at the station is vital. By bringing staff – who’ll receive training for their new role – out onto the platform, we can provide more assistance in the right place, at the right time, to those needing it, whether that’s help buying a ticket or help boarding a train.
“More staff on platforms will help us to continue to provide a safe and more accessible service.”
The rail company said they have encouraged all views on the proposed changes with their an online consultation until July 26.
Details and the full list of ticket offices at risk on their website
