COVENTRY MESSAGE BOARD

More than 18,000 people have said they are against London Midland’s plans to cut opening hours at 86 ticket offices, including 5 in Coventry and Warwickshire, to try to save cash.



The firm says the amount of people using them’s dropped to such a level that in the case of 8 stations it’s not worth them having an office there at all.

86 ticket offices would be affected, including 5 here – Berkswell, Canley, Coleshill Parkway, Nuneaton and Tile Hill – with all three Coventry stations set to lose their office on Sundays.

Bosses are set to bring in 29 new self-service machines and the plans would put around 80 jobs at risk.

Commercial Director Alex Hynes said: “We have looked carefully at how our ticket offices are being used and we now want to ensure that they are even more efficient and meet more closely the needs of our passengers.”

Anthony Smith, Chief Executive of Passenger Focus who carried out the consultation said:

“Times are difficult and it’s important that train companies make best use of their resources. London Midland has done a good job in talking to its passengers about its plans but the message back is clear. Passengers were almost unanimous in their request for staff at the station, raising concerns about ticket machines and the need for staff for advice and assistance on ticket sales.”

Alex Hynes, Commercial Director for London Midland said: “We’ve already started work on dealing with many of the issues raised during the consultation and as part of the important next steps we want to make sure that we continue to have a constructive dialogue with all of our key stakeholders.

“We are keen that our future discussions prove positive in overcoming the initial objections to our proposals.”

The final decision on the plans rests with the Department for Transport.