Published: 13 January 2012
by ANDREW JOHNSON

CAMPAIGNERS are gearing up to fight any move to leave rail stations unstaffed.

The government is considering proposals to remove ticket offices from hundreds of small stations across the country.

In Islington this would mean no ticket offices at Caledonian Road and Barnsbury, Crouch Hill, Drayton Park, Essex Road, Farringdon Road, Old Street and Upper Holloway.

At a meeting of Islington Hands Off Our Public Services (Ihoops) on Monday campaigners were warned that the plans would discourage people from using stations, especially at night, and this would have a knock-on effect for the local economy.

The campaign group also agreed to start a leafleting campaign at Essex Road station on Tuesday.

Ken Muller, spokesman for Ihoops, said: “We are calling on the government and the train operators to come clean on their plans for Islington’s ticket offices.

“These proposals would open the door for stations to become unsafe, and the valued assistance that station staff  provide to disabled and older passengers would also be lost.

We believe public transport users in our borough deserve safe, staffed stations.”

The Department of Transport has yet to decide whether to go ahead with the ticket office closures.

The proposal was made in the McNulty report – an independent review of the rail network by Sir Roy McNulty, published in May last year – as one way of helping shave £1billion off the cost of the railways.

The government’s response to the recommendations is due to be published shortly.

Mitch Tovey, of the Transport Salaried Staffs Association union, which is made up of office and managerial staff, said that they wanted to “fire a shot across the government’s bow”.

“It’s not definite at the moment,” he said.

“The rail companies may be bound to keep ticket offices as part of existing franchise agreements.

But when they are retendered that obligation could be removed.

The lowest bidder may well be able to keep costs down by removing these members of staff.

“If a train station is lit and staffed people know it’s safe and they use it.

People feel more confident and use the shops.

Removing the staff can adversely affect the whole area.”

George Woods, of campaign group Together for Transport, added: “This coincides with secret plans revealed by Transport for London to close all but 30 of London’s Underground ticket offices.

This double whammy will remove the human face of public transport in London and leave everybody worse off.

“At a time of spiralling fare rises on trains and the Tube, Londoners deserve a better, not a worse, service.”

A spokesman for the Department for Transport said a response to the recommendations in the McNulty report would be published later this year.