A West Lothian MSP has encouraged locals to take part in a Scotrail consultation that is currently running for a proposed change in ticket office hours.
Both the Linlithgow and Bathgate ticket offices will be two of 120 ticket offices to be affected by the change in opening hours.
Bathgate ticket office will now be open from 7am until 8pm Monday to Saturday, where it was previously open from 7am to 1.40pm.
The Bathgate office will also be open longer on a Sunday, from 9am to 7pm, where it was previously open from 8am until 2pm.
Linlithgow ticket office will now be open from 6am to 7.30pm Monday through to Friday, 8.30am to 7pm on a Saturday, and 8.15am to 7pm on Sundays.
This is a reduction from the previous opening hours of 6am to 11pm Monday through to Saturday, and 8.15am to 11pm on a Sunday.
The consultation began on January 12, and will run for 21 days, meaning locals will be able to give their input until February 2.
Now Linlithgow MSP, Fiona Hyslop, is calling on local people to have theri say on the plans.
MSP Fiona Hyslop said: “I would encourage any residents in West Lothian who could be affected by the ticket office in either Bathgate or Linlithgow changing their hours to have their views heard through the ScotRail consultation.
“Any resident of West Lothian who has concerns, can contact Transport Focus either by email or via post to have their views heard.”
All train operating companies in the UK must follow the Ticket and Settling Agreement before changing ticket office opening hours.
The procedure requires extensive analysis of ticket office usage, sales data, and consultation with affected areas before changing opening hours.
Following a review of ticket offices in the country, ScotRail is now consulting the public for the proposed changes.
Those wishing to take part in the consultation process have to contact UK railway watchdog Transport Focus.
A total of 3 ticket offices are set to close - Clydebank, Woodhall, and Cartsdyke - staff affected by closures and reduced hours have been redeployed at other stations.
Ticket machines will be in place at all affected stations, and tickets can still be bought whilst onboard the train.
Data used to justify the change in ticket office opening hours was taken from a review in 2019, and was not impacted by reduced service usage during the pandemic.
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