GOVIA THAMESLINK RAILWAY'S TICKET OFFICES

That this House notes that London TravelWatch and Transport Focus are now consulting on Govia Thameslink Railway’s proposals to close the majority of its 84 station ticket offices and reduce opening hours to only peak times at others from Kings Lynn to Worthing; is concerned that the proposals are being brought forward despite many of these stations experiencing large increases in passenger numbers; believes the closure of these ticket offices will cause serious difficulties for passengers, especially visitors, the elderly or disabled who might not be able to access the full range of tickets and services they need from ticket machines, finding it harder to obtain advice on ticket and fare options from staff on platforms, suffering delays to their travel due to insufficient numbers of replacement ticket machines or queues around staff, experiencing a more congested concourse, overspending as a result of being less confident using a ticket machine and thus being deterred from rail travel in the future, and travelling on a network which is more susceptible to crime; and therefore calls on Govia Thameslink Railway urgently to review its plans so that these railway station ticket offices can be kept open.