Next round of Ticket Office closures......

Sadly - and without dipping into politics - station staff were screwed by both unions with regards to the shorter working week. I wonder what RMT can honestly do, they did agree to the deal.

Also in reality this news isn't exactly a bomb shell.

Most ticket offices to close will no doubt be SSMF stations, which presently only open for a few hours anyway. The total job loses will also include a reduction in other locations where banking turns have been eliminated by ESAF.

We're losing 1 out of our 6 rostered SAMF's - simply as a result on no banking turn. However the GSM was planning to do a business case for an extra CSA for platform duties - v busy in the peak.

Sorry:

ESAF = enhanced station accounts facility = computerised accounts system = no paperwork

GSM = group station manager = an employing manager responsible for about 100 staff = the guv'ner

SSMF = a multi-functional station supervisor = a station supervisor at a quieter station who sells tickets, often lone working.

So basically - in plain English - my post reads:

Most closed ticket offices will be at the quieter outer London station - often only staffed by 1 person. However the most job loses will be as a result of this new computer system that removes the need for someone to manually check the paperwork.

We're losing a ticket seller, but hopefully our guv'ner wants to keep the post by using somebody on the platform during the peaks and for reversers.

Eventually, ticket offices will be limited to [busy] Zone 1 stations, and maybe a handful outside Z1.


As CS has said, ESAF and the the shorter working week have had a big effect already. Many staff see SAMF as a dying grade.

As long as there are more staff on the gateline, more staff on the platforms and more staff available throughout the entire day, I don't see why ticket office closures are so terrible. The only beef I would have with such a thing is if LU didn't replace ticket office staff with frontline customer-facing staff - if they did that, it would be phenomenally stupid of them IMHO.

I agree that additional gateline and platform staff is a good thing, but there are a number of problems created by reducing ticket office staffing and opening hours.

Firstly TfLs over complicated ticketing system. A newcomer to London is overwhelmed by peak/offpeak, paper ticket/oyster, zones and bands, where pay as you go is valid, discounts for children etc.
Having a member of staff who can explain and offer the best option is vital. This function could be done by gateline staff, but often people with such questions will need assistance using ticket machines, which then leaves the CSA unavailable to assist with other gateline dutes.

When oystercards go wrong if there is no ticket office available the customer faces the prospect of paying to call the oystercard helpline, often waiting for several minutes just to get their call answered. If a replacement card is required, they are advised to fork out for another ticket and wait for a replacement to be issued.

Customers wishing to purchase discount tickets, such as those with railcards and priv cards cannot use the machines. There are also not enough ticket machines on the network with oyster capability.

The majority of stations just have one multifare machine capable of accepting all payment methods. When these break down (as they frequently do) stations can be forced to advise passengers to pay at destination. At the destination station the ticket office is often closed, and passengers are simply let out of the system without paying their fare!

None of the Metro ticket machines (excepting perhaps the ones on the Sunderland extension which I've never used) accepts cards or notes. Note changers are provided at only the very busiest stations. Although the machines have had exterior makeovers, including new screens and buttons, they are ultimately the same machines which were installed during the construction of the stations in the early 80s.

At that time they were installed the fares were sufficiently low that paying with a note or credit card would have been silly. The most expensive ticket sold was only £2 or so. I can remember the child fare being 10p single for any distance. Then the fares started rising at a rate far in excess of inflation in the 90s as the PTE (which brands itself as Nexus) became increasingly cash strapped. Much of the reason for this was the deregulation of bus operators, which made travelling by Metro less attractive. The most expensive Metro single is now £2.70 for three zones (the zones being another fare rise effectively as the boundaries run across the most common journeys). The most expensive ticket that I can think of is an adult day rover, which is £5.20.

Nexus cannot afford to buy machines compatible with modern life, so is banging on the door of the government. New machines are provisionally expected in 2008-9 as part of the "reinvigoration" project. In reality this shiny project is actually all the work which should have been done in the last decade, but was put off.

There have never been any ticket offices on the Metro. Season tickets, concessionary passes etc are issued in the travel centres, which happen to be in the same building as the largest stations. The staff in these are employed by a separate company owned by Nexus. There are no station staff of the LU kind. There are a few customer service staff around in peak hours in the busiest stations, but that's it. As you may have guessed by now, fare evasion is utterly rife.

Of the many, many times I've travelled on the Metro I've had my ticket checked once that I remember. I do remember that they used to have automatic ticket barriers though, and I almost certainly still have some tickets from the 80s with magnetic stripes on them, although I think these lasted longer than the gates did.

Sounds like LU's equivalent of the Bar Steward Squad. ;D

"You're on MY station and you ain't got a ticket"

Ugh, this is stupid. Honestly it is... First off, it gives a bad rap to LU seeing as peopel are going to say i pay money so they can close my ticket office quite true.

Second, Theres always someone there to tell you they can't sell you a ticket.
Third, When the machine breaks down and they tell you to go through and pay at the other end. Ok thats fine except for the day i couldn't get one and he trys to give me a penalty notice.

I said Upminster Bridge, refused to pay he made a call and said pay at the other end.

Also it really ticks me off when they do this for all the people round here, like my mum who use to get utterly confused with the system and pay cash fairs for buses and tubes. It's always nice to get your ticket from someone, who also gives advice about routes and delays e.t.c

Well I use Upminster Bridge, included in the first batch of goodbye ticket sellers. All i can say is "Disaster".

Cheers
James

Exactly Phil - and boy am I glad I got onto the train side when I did!

In the example you give, most staff would let them pay the other end. If revenue caught them, we would advise them of the situation.

The odd staff member might give you a hard time, but the bulk wont [Regardless of whether they are on this forum or not.]

As to your second comment, yes, its possible, personally, I am not a fan of revenue. They judge now annd think later imho. Receipts and ID would help though.

I would agree with Chris....anything could happen, it could be sat on, bent, cracked...the list goes on. All the RCI would have to do is take the Oyster Card number, and get in contact with the station concerned and see if that serial number had been used there.

Hmm, but traffic wardens have nicer uniforms!