I consider myself to be a loyal, if sometimes long-suffering, user of our railways, a seasoned veteran of the service at its very best – and at its worst. And the worst excesses in my direct experience have clearly been caused by poor decisions made by the privatised companies attempting to run a network with horribly stretched resources.
One might consider that inevitable when the primary focus is on profits for the shareholders rather than customer service. And it is more in evidence, sadly, than ever.
I refer, of course, to plans to close all the staffed rail ticket offices at stations in the Borough, including at Crawley, Three Bridges and Ifield.
On the 5th July, plans were announced to move staff out of ticket offices and into stations, with the consultation on these startling changes lasting just 21 days.
That news will be deeply worrying, not to mention catastrophic, to our elderly, disabled and vulnerable residents, and all those who rely on the support and advice provided by staff in ticket offices.
They are still needed, at least one in nine tickets are still sold at physical ticket offices. That represents over 150 million journeys nationally over the past year.
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.
Given that many of those passengers relying on ticket offices may otherwise struggle to use digital alternatives, it is difficult to see how they will be able to continue to use our rail network with confidence.
Research by the Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB), for instance, found only 3% of people with sight loss said they could use a ticket vending machine without problems and 58% said it was impossible.
Passengers in Crawley are already suffering due to the chaos on our railways. They should not have to face any further disruptions to their travel plans due to rushed changes to our rail networks.
But none of that matters, it seems, in Tory Britain. Customer service always comes last under their Government.
Cllr Michael Jones
Leader, Crawley Borough Council