Labour mayors are launching legal action to prevent the closure of railway station ticket offices across England.
Five metro mayors, led by Greater Manchester’s Andy Burnham, said the “rushed” public consultation on the changes was not following due process and that the closures would affect thousands of jobs and “erode trust” in the railway.
The rail industry, under pressure from the government to slash costs and still locked in dispute with unions, unveiled plans this month to close most of England’s remaining ticket offices, with just a three-week consultation.
The Rail Delivery Group (RDG) has said ticket office staff could better serve the travelling public in new roles on concourses and platforms, arguing that about only one in eight tickets are now bought at offices rather than machines or online.
However, the mayors argue that a 12-week minimum period was necessary for consultation, and charities representing people with sight loss and other disabilities have also objected.
Unions have described the closures as “a fig leaf for redundancies”.
Burnham said the mayors “will fight this all the way”, adding: “These closures will affect over 2,000 jobs. It’s just not the case that this is about redeploying staff. This will be a serious reduction in the level of support available to people when they are travelling. It will further erode what remains of trust in travelling on our trains and we think it is the wrong move at the wrong time.”
In Burnham’s heartland, Northern Trains is planning to close 131 out of 149 remaining offices, while Avanti is planning to close ticket offices at mainline stations including Manchester Piccadilly.
Along with Tracy Brabin, the mayor of West Yorkshire, Steve Rotheram of Liverpool city region, Oliver Coppard of South Yorkshire, and Nik Johnson of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough, Burnham will send a pre-action protocol letter to operators, setting out their legal challenge.
Burnham said the “rushed” consultation “should be declared null and void”, adding: “Section 29 of the Railways Act 2005 sets out a very clear and detailed process which must be followed if a train operating company proposes to close a station or any part of a station. That process has simply not been followed in this instance. It requires a 12-week consultation.”
Ministers have said the process was robust and “industry-led”.
A spokesperson for the RDG said: “All train operators are complying with the consultation process as set out in the ticketing and settlement agreement. They include proposals which, across the network as a whole, would see more staff on concourses and ticket halls to help passengers than there are today, helping with a whole range of needs, from buying tickets to journey planning and helping with accessibility needs.
“We encourage anyone who wants to find out more to contact their local train company, or submit their views to independent passenger watchdogs Transport Focus or London TravelWatch.”
