Protest against ticket office closures takes place outside Hastings Station today

The protest has been organised by Hastings Green Party, who are encouraging people to come along and join in and bring placards and banners.

A union has said that if traditional ticket offices and counters close it would be ‘catastrophic for elderly, disabled and vulnerable passengers’.

On July 5, transport watchdogs London TravelWatch and Transport Focus have today (July 5) launched public consultations on behalf of rail operators across the country, including Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR), ‘to consider how tickets are sold and to improve customer service in the future’. GTR operates Southern, Thameslink, Gatwick Express and Great Northern services.

The public consultation, which closes on July 26, has been launched to seek the views of the public about the proposals, which are said to have been launched to ‘improve customer service and reflect how customers now buy tickets’.

A GTR spokesperson said: “The proposal is to move ticket office colleagues out from behind traditional ticket office windows, which would close, onto station concourses The aim is to improve customer service and better reflect how most passengers now buy tickets – 9 in 10 purchases are outside of traditional ticket offices. “No station that is staffed today would become unstaffed; in-person help would still be available and accessibility support will continue.”

The National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers (RMT) has condemned train operators and the government for the plans.

An RMT spokesperson said: “On the back of their announcement, they are issuing statutory redundancy notices for hundreds of railway workers, something RMT will fiercely oppose.”

General Secretary Mick Lynch added: "The decision to close up to 1,000 ticket offices and to issue hundreds of redundancy notices to staff is a savage attack on railway workers, their families and the travelling public.

"Travellers will be forced to rely on apps and remote mobile teams to be available to assist them rather than having trained staff on stations. This is catastrophic for elderly, disabled and vulnerable passengers trying to access the rail network.”

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