Ticket office consultation – FAQs

Here are answers to some of the common questions we have been asked about our consultation on proposed changes to our ticket office opening hours:

Why are you making changes?

• The current regulations deciding our ticket office opening times date from the mid-1990s. This means they pre-date the invention of the Oyster card and c2c Smartcard, contactless travel and smartphones
• The declining state of the economy means c2c is facing real financial pressures. This means we have to make difficult financial decisions about out costs
• We are proposing changes when a ticket office sells around 12 tickets an hour or less – that’s roughly one ticket every five minutes. That low level of existing customer demand is unsustainable
• We are consulting on these proposals so you can respond via Transport Focus and London TravelWatch to have your say

What is happening at my station?

• A full list of proposed changes available here
• We are consulting on these proposals. You can respond via Transport Focus and London TravelWatch to have your say

What impact will these changes have?

• We are only proposing changes when there is a low level of existing customer demand, when the ticket office sells around 12 tickets an hour or less – that’s about one ticket every five minutes
• We are not proposing closing any ticket offices entirely
• These times are the proposed opening hours for our ticket offices, rather than the times that staff will be on duty at the station. The busiest stations will have staff on duty from first train to last train. Almost all stations will have staff on the ticket gateline during both morning and evening peaks
• These changes are supported by investment in new ticket machines, improved CCTV and mobile security patrols, both onboard trains and at stations, to ensure we can still deliver the services our customers need
• Our proposals do not involve any compulsory staff redundancies

How do I buy a ticket when the ticket office is closed?

• We have been investing heavily in a new retail platform this year which makes it easier than ever to buy your tickets
• New ticket vending machines will be in place at every station before the end of the year, with improved functionality and selling a wider range of tickets – including tickets for travel the next day
• We also have a new website in place and will be launching a new app soon to make it easier for those who want to buy their tickets online
• We are also upgrading the ticket machines our staff use at stations. This means we can offer customers more support at stations at busy times such as selling tickets on the c2c Smartcard

What about station facilities like waiting rooms, toilet or lift opening times?

• We are not proposing any changes to the opening times of passenger facilities as part of this consultation. They will remain open at the same times as they are today

What about passenger assistance?

• These changes also do not alter our current commitments to customers who require assistance
• Where customers pre-book assistance at least four hours in advance, we will guarantee someone will be at the station to help them
• If customers haven’t pre-booked, as today we will do our best to get them on the next available train
• Our stations are all staffed at the busiest times; at other times we will deploy our mobile security teams or dispatch staff from the neighbouring station if necessary
• We have help points at every station. These have a live link to our control centre, so there is someone to contact if you need help

What about my personal security?

• Our staff will continue to be on duty at each station at the busiest times. At the busiest stations, our staff will be on duty from first train of the day to last train at night
• At times when we don’t have staff permanently located at the station, we have introduced new mobile security teams. They will be responsible for two or three stations each and will be making regular patrols
• They will be supported by the upgrades we have made to our CCTV equipment which is monitored live from our control centre, and regular British Transport Police patrols on our route.

When do the changes apply from?

• Following our consultation, if we do proceed with these changes they will take effect from January

How do I respond to the consultation?

• We are running a consultation on these proposals
• You can contact London TravelWatch or Transport Focus, depending on location of the station, to have your say
• Contact details for each watchdog are available here