Lancaster railway station ticket office under threat in Avanti plans to ‘modernise’ network

Avanti have today, Wednesday, announced a 21-day consultation for 20 stations including Lancaster.

This includes plans to permanently close the Lancaster ticket office and also reduce hours for ‘ticketing support’ for customers.

Ticketing support would be available Monday to Saturday 7.30am to 4.15pm, and on Sundays from 9am to 5pm.

Station staffed hours would remain unchanged, they say, at Monday to Saturday 4.50am to 11.30pm and 9am until 10.45pm on Sundays.

Avanti say around 12% of all tickets are sold at ticket offices nowadays, compared to 82% in the mid-1990s.

Managing director of Avanti West Coast, Andy Mellors, said: “It is important for the rail industry to change the way it retails tickets as customer behaviour has evolved over the last three decades.

“Our proposals would mean more staff on hand to give face-to-face help with a much wider range of needs, from journey planning, to finding the right ticket and helping those with accessibility needs.

“Our commitment is that we will always treat our people fairly, with support and extra training to move in to new and varied roles with a number of responsibilities without compromising on the safety of them or our customers.

“We also understand that our customers have differing needs which is why we will be consulting with accessibility groups on this consultation.”

The public consultation is being managed by independent rail watchdogs Transport Focus and London TravelWatch.

Full details of the proposals and the public consultation can be found at http://www.avantiwestcoast.co.uk/consultation and http://raildeliverygroup.com/customer-focused-stations

Lancaster MP Cat Smith has launched a petition in a bid to halt the plans.

"This is absurd, and will worsen passenger safety, affordability, accessibility and services - hitting vulnerable passengers the hardest,” she said.

"The ticket office is the only way for passengers to ensure that they get the appropriate and best value fare for their journey.

“There are a range of products and services available at ticket offices which are not available at Ticket Vending Machines.

“This can include refunds, vouchers, seat reservations, disabled passenger discounts, complex ticketing enquiries, fare-splitting, up-to-date cancellation/delay updates and re-routing, ferry/bus connections, and season ticket purchases.

“While the Government says that ‘only’ 12% of tickets are sold at ticket offices, in 2022/23, there were 1.5bn passenger journeys in the UK, which equates to around 180m journeys being facilitated by ticket offices.

“Lancaster station ticket office is something which is greatly valued by the local community, and many people have shared how ticketing staff have assisted them to get cheaper fares and deal with their complicated and diverted journeys.

“I share the alarm of residents about the prospect of ticket office closures which will almost certainly worsen passenger safety, security, accessibility, and services. I also fear that the proposed changes would hit vulnerable passengers the hardest, and I am fiercely campaigning to oppose these changes.

“I really value hearing about your own direct experiences, and I want to use them to show just how cherished the staff and ticket offices are.

“I’d really like to hear about your experiences and how staff at the ticketing office have helped you.”

You can respond to Avanti’s consultation through Ms Smith’s website at https://www.catsmith.co.uk/latest/2023/07/05/save-lancaster-ticket-office/