Petition to save Spalding Railway Station ticket office on the right tracks?
A councillor is urging people ‘there is still time to get on board’ with a petition to save Spalding train station’s ticket office.
The petition is gaining pace to save Spalding train station’s ticket office from closure and with 626 signatures in the South Holland and The Deepings constituency, it seems to be on the right tracks.
The national petition to require train operators to keep ticket offices and platform staff at train stations currently has 88,065 signatures.
Plans to shut the ticket office were labelled as ‘stupid’ and Coun Jan Whitbourn, vice chair, South Holland District Council and Coun Gary Taylor are keen for the public to sign the Save Our Station petition.
For the petition to be heard and discussed in Parliament it needs to reach 100,000, with Sir John Hayes’ constituency showing as one of the highest numbers of signatures at 626.
Coun Whitbourn said: “I am so concerned – it is going to become an empty building which could fall into disrepair and we have enough of those in Spalding – I don’t want to see that.
“We need to make a case – it is not just a ticket office, they work so hard there to please the people in the community.
“They can find you a really good deal for a first class price – you couldn’t get that at a ticket machine, online or on the train.
The consultation period for plans to close the ticket office was extended until September 1 by East Midlands Railway (EMR) but Coun Whitbourn thinks there should be more time for people to be listened to.
Members of the public travelling from Spalding station expressed their concerns about removing the ticket office and personnel.
Catherine Amess (32) who was travelling to Great Yarmouth with her three young children said: “I was born in Spalding and now live in Holbeach.
“It will take the historical part of Spalding away, I’ve always liked coming to the ticket office.
“The lady at the ticket office looked after my suitcase – they are here to help and without them we’d be a bit stuck.
“I booked online but if you’d need to speak to someone if there was an issue – I’d be panicking – you couldn’t sort it with nobody at the ticket office.”
Deborah Horsfield lives in Spalding and she said: “I really hope they don’t – it is really important that they don’t. Seeing a person at a desk is reassuring.
“It is the first time I have booked online and a lady came out and helped which you can’t do if it is just a ticket machine or other enquiries.
“If I knew she was in the ticket office I would have bought it here.
“It is a disadvantage to those who don’t regularly use a computer.
“I am the same about bank and supermarket staff – if you don’t use them you lose them.”
Coun Whitbourn added: “Sir John Hayes is on board with this and although September 1 is supposed to be the closure (of the consultation period) I don’t think it is – they have got to listen.
“There is still time – we need to make sure we get something done.”
If you are not able to sign the petition online, you can call Coun Whitbourn directly on 07779 895388