Victoria Prentis has released a statement after the planned widespread closure of railway station ticket offices in England has been scrapped.

Transport Secretary Mark Harper said the Government has asked train operators to withdraw their proposals, which were brought forward due to pressure from ministers to cut costs.

This is in response to watchdogs Transport Focus and London TravelWatch announcing they opposed every single planned closure due to issues such as the impact on accessibility.

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Victoria Prentis said: “I know many constituents were concerned by train operators’ proposals to close train station ticket offices. Ministers were clear that this summer’s public consultation on the proposals had to proceed before any decisions were taken.

“Following an assessment of the feedback received from passengers, accessibility groups and stakeholders, it had become apparent that train operators’ proposals would not meet the highest quality of service for all customers.

“Ministers have therefore informed train operators that their proposals to close ticket offices should not proceed. The Department for Transport has recently completed an audit of all England’s railway stations and will instead consider what improvements can be made to the benefit of all passengers.

“I know this will come as welcome news to all those who rely on our ticket offices in Banbury and Bicester.”

Plans to close the vast majority of station ticket offices in England, plus Avanti West Coast’s ticket office at Glasgow Central, were brought forward by train operators and their representative body, the Rail Delivery Group (RDG).

 

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This story was written by Matthew Norman, he joined the team in 2022 as a Facebook community reporter.

Matthew covers Bicester and focuses on finding stories from diverse communities.

Get in touch with him by emailing: Matthew.norman@newsquest.co.uk

Follow him on Twitter: @OxMailMattN1