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Topic: SWT To Close 9 Of Its 10 Travel Centres (Read 2044 times)
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Lee
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Centres at Salisbury , Guildford , Bournemouth , Southampton , Weymouth , Winchester , Richmond , Poole and Woking will close with only the London Waterloo travel centre remaining open. The train operator plans to rent the space vacated by the travel centres to shop and catering outlets (link below.) http://www.transportbriefing.co.uk/story.php?id=4420&PHPSESSID=33fd3e28a85291b33b35b5393cb9adcdA spokeswoman for SWT denied that the company , which has pledged to pay £1.2bn to the Treasury under its 10-year franchise , is making the changes to save money , claiming that passengers are now buying more tickets on the internet. She added that 194 ticket vending machines would be installed across the network next year and the services provided at travel centres will be available through telesales , the internet and at ticket offices. No jobs will be lost. |
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courgettelawn
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Salisbury Travel Centre still open. On one mid-morning when it was closed there was chaos at the station and people missed their trains as the one ticket machine and manned booths were over-run. Here is the on-going correspondence between Robert Key, MP for Salisbury, and Stewart Palmer, SWT MD: http://www.robertkey.com/salisbury-travel-centre.htmThere seems to be some ambiguity about franchise terms and the closure decision made without consultation. |
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courgettelawn
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Here, finally, is the excerpted reply to my concerns about the closure at Salisbury. Please note that there are no comfy seats at Salisbury Travel Centre... and how many people who want to just turn up and get on will use trainline.com who charge a £2 premium for credit cards or will telephone their customer services for advice.
I also note that to date there are no extra ticket machine, no clearer instructions on their use and no more than two manned ticket booths at a time.
What 'appears' to be the loss of a key service clearly is...
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<snip>
I am sorry to hear that you are concerned about the closure of Salisbury
Travel Centre, and I do appreciate that some customers will be frustrated
by what appears to be the loss of a key service. However I would like to
assure you that this is not the case.
All our ticket office clerks can advise and issue tickets for the more
complex journeys that you may wish to make. Therefore, passengers will
still be able to get the same level of advice and service they had
before, albeit they will need to ask at a ticket office rather than sit
in a travel centre.
However, we do realise that some passengers like the comfort and
environment of the travel centre, and for those customers the option of
ringing our Customer Services team on 0845 6000 650 is always available.
Our Customer Service team has a wealth of knowledge and experience
between them, and passengers do not have to leave the comfort of their
own home to get accurate and reliable service and advice.
I do hope that you are reassured with regard to this matter, and thank
you for your contact.
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Lee
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Recent Parliamentary Written Answer : Robert Key: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when she received proposals from South West Trains under the Network Modifications (Closures) regime contained in the Railway Act 2005 to close the travel centre at Salisbury station; and when she expects to announce her decision.
Mr. Tom Harris: The proposal was received by the Department on 20 November 2007. The decision to approve this minor modification has been made. The determination was issued on 25 February. Also : Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when she received from South West Trains notification of network modifications relating to travel offices in Hampshire; and if she will make a statement.
Mr. Tom Harris: South West Trains forwarded minor modification proposals covering a number of travel centres at their stations to the Department for Transport on 20 November 2007 and 24 December 2007. Three stations in Hampshire are currently under consideration: Southampton, Winchester and Basingstoke. |
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« Last Edit: March 05, 2008, 01:46:37 PM by Lee »
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courgettelawn
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No extra of the promised ticket machines to date. Queues markedly longer when the machine stops accepting cards.
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