MP Alicia Kearns has petition for ticket machine at Oakham Railway Station
An MP has launched a campaign to install a ticket machine at a town railway station.
There is a ticket office at Oakham Railway Station but it is among more than 1,000 announced as due to close in the next three years.
Alicia Kearns, MP for Rutland, has launched an online petition calling for a ticket machine to be installed at the station in Oakham.
The petition, which can be found at www.aliciakearns.com/campaigns, will be presented to East Midlands Railway, which operates the station.
Mrs Kearns (Con) said: “Oakham is the only railway station in Rutland and it is wrong that we don’t have a single ticket machine.
“With the consultation on the closure of manned railway ticket offices ongoing, we must ensure that those who cannot use contactless or mobile tickets are not excluded from accessing this vital service.
“I would encourage everyone who feels as strongly as I do about this to sign my petition on my website, which I will present to our local rail companies.”
Mrs Kearns recently wrote to the managing director of East Midlands Railway highlighting her concerns about the train operator’s proposals to close the ticket office at Oakham Railway Station.
She has also responded to The Passenger Watchdog Transport Focus public consultation with these concerns.
The ticket office at Oakham is currently open from 6.30am to 12.45pm weekdays, from 7.45am to 2.10pm on Saturdays, and from 12.10pm to 7pm on Sundays.
People can board a train without a ticket but may have to pay the full fare or a penalty charge.