SouthEastern Railway Ticket Office Closures

[avid2424]

The SouthEastern Railway website lists 40 Ticket Offices that will remain closed from 1PM or earlier to the end of the day (that is closed for the whole of the afternoon and evening of Monday 10 October)

Is that sort of normal?

The closures include, Ashford International, Bromley South, Folkestone Central, Sevenoaks

Indeed can the forum advise whether any of these four stations would be on a list of key/important stations? I am thinking they would/should be

Would SouthEastern usually switch their staff from more minor stations in order to cover any key/important stations? (The staff member can simply buy a ticket at the staffed ticket office, then close the ticket office and hop on a train)

And if 40 Ticket Offices are closed, how many SouthEastern Railway Ticket Offices would then remain open say between 2PM and 5PM on Monday 10 October

 

[skyhigh]

Is that sort of normal?

Given there has essentially been a recruitment ban pending the reshape of the role of ticket offices, higher than normal closures due to staff shortages are the current normal across the country. But see my edit below.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 10 Oct 2023 ==

(The staff member can simply buy a ticket at the staffed ticket office, then close the ticket office and hop on a train)

I think comments such as this show a certain naivety.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 10 Oct 2023 ==

Edit:
Looking into it Southeastern have 40 stations with ticket offices, so if they are all shut it suggests there's a system issue.

However that said I can't find a mention anywhere of ticket office closures so are you sure you haven't misread?

 

[ScotGG]

It can often be double that. Southeastern are chronically short of staff.

 

[avid2424]

I was taking my information from

Service disruption | Southeastern

If you are travelling you can find out the latest information about our services and see if there are any disruptions that might affect you.

www.southeasternrailway.co.uk

And today (Thursday 12 October) the page says two ticket offices closed to the end of today. Possibly that is two too many. Although clearly not as noticeable as the recent experience where SouthEastern had listed 40 ticket offices that would be closed from 1PM or earlier through to the end of the day. On that previous occasion it did not seem like a system issue, or rather I am thinking that SouthEastern would have mentioned a system issue, if that was the scenario

 

[Stephen42]

I was taking my information from

Service disruption | Southeastern

If you are travelling you can find out the latest information about our services and see if there are any disruptions that might affect you.

www.southeasternrailway.co.uk

And today (Thursday 12 October) the page says two ticket offices closed to the end of today. Possibly that is two too many. Although clearly not as noticeable as the recent experience where SouthEastern had listed 40 ticket offices that would be closed from 1PM or earlier through to the end of the day. On that previous occasion it did not seem like a system issue, or rather I am thinking that SouthEastern would have mentioned a system issue, if that was the scenario

Using August 2023 based on FOI data ticket offices were closed 35% of the hours they were meant to be open. With around 180 ticket offices 40 being closed wouldn't be unusual. Due to a lack of staff rostering may take into account when ticket offices are used most and many ticket offices would have the same set of quietest shifts.

 

[yorkie]

...(The staff member can simply buy a ticket at the staffed ticket office, then close the ticket office and hop on a train)...

I don't understand what you mean by this.

 

[avid2424]

yorkie, that was a supplementary note by me re my post

My post was written

Would SouthEastern usually switch their staff from more minor stations in order to cover any key/important stations? (The staff member can simply buy a ticket at the staffed ticket office, then close the ticket office and hop on a train)

In other words, if a ticket office staff member working at a more minor station was asked to immediately take up duties for the same day at a nearby key/important station then the staff member could travel by train between the two stations. The ticket office staff member could buy his rail ticket for this journey at the more minor station before making the journey. I would buy a rail ticket to make sure I was not accused of ticketless travel, and of course then claim back the cost of the ticket

 

[transportphoto]

In other words, if a ticket office staff member working at a more minor station was asked to immediately take up duties for the same day at a nearby key/important station then the staff member could travel by train between the two stations. The ticket office staff member could buy his rail ticket for this journey at the more minor station before making the journey. I would buy a rail ticket to make sure I was not accused of ticketless travel, and of course then claim back the cost of the ticket

In theory, yes, lots of variables to determine whether that would happen in reality. The staff member wouldn’t have to pay for travel between A and B.

 

[Geogregor]

Would SouthEastern usually switch their staff from more minor stations in order to cover any key/important stations? (The staff member can simply buy a ticket at the staffed ticket office, then close the ticket office and hop on a train)

In other words, if a ticket office staff member working at a more minor station was asked to immediately take up duties for the same day at a nearby key/important station then the staff member could travel by train between the two stations. The ticket office staff member could buy his rail ticket for this journey at the more minor station before making the journey. I would buy a rail ticket to make sure I was not accused of ticketless travel, and of course then claim back the cost of the ticket

It doesn't work like that.

When rosters for the following week are prepared if there are gaps due to sickness or simply not having enough staff rosters will ask volunteers for overtime to cover busier locations. Nobody will ever be asked to drop everything and jump on a train on the day.

In general you work at your own station. There are staff members who cover wider areas and they are moved when needed, but again, not on a day but when roster is being prepared, usually week in advance.

Southeastern is massively short of staff as they basically stopped hiring ticket office staff. And not just recently. Clearly they don't want to commit to spending on staff and are prepared to loose sales. Especially as so many stations are not gated, even in London, and revenue checks are extremely rare.

It is wider mindset of the current railway regime. Short term cost cutting is more important than growing revenue and passenger numbers. Which on Southeastern services on suburban London are probably undercounted anyway as there is a lot of ticketless travel.

 

[ScotGG]

Very large number of station's unstaffed today that are supposed to be manned.

 

[avid2424]

And today 34 listed as closed. Quite a few are listed twice as clearly 34 would not grab the headlines

 

[ScotGG]

46 closures today. That's without any listed twice.

 

[Islineclear3_1]

What concerns me is will staff "really" be out on the platform assisting passengers if their ticket office closes?

Maybe so at the busier stations but I can't see this happening at your average 1-2tph stations

Cynical or not ?

 

[wagnaga]

What concerns me is will staff "really" be out on the platform assisting passengers if their ticket office closes?

Maybe so at the busier stations but I can't see this happening at your average 1-2tph stations

Cynical or not ?

I'm not convinced and we know the government want to reduce the cost of the railways. I'm sure the savings will be on the government side not the farepayer.

 

[ScotGG]

I very much doubt it. What we see with Southeastern with a substantial reduction in station staffing will be replicated nationwide