Chigwell Lib Dems Speak Out Against Closure of Tube Ticket Offices

It is with anger and distress that we were informed of London Undergound's decision to close the ticket offices in the two stations serving the parish of Chigwell (Grange Hill and Chigwell).

How can this be allowed to happen at a time when we are being encouraged by the Government to get on to public transport?

The may residents in our ward (Grange Hill) who use the station both for commuting and leisure purposes will be affected.

Whilst the intrroduction of the Oyster card may have decreased demand for the ticket office services, the many elderly and non-Oyster card users among us very much require the services of the traditional ticket office.

It has come to something when the ticket office of the local station has been closed indefinitely taking away what is essentially the human interaction between customer and provider.

What next? Will we have to phone a call centre in New Delhi to secure a ticket to travel from Grange Hill to Leytonstone?

The practicalities of using new electronic equipment for those less technically minded, the lack of customer service availability (if things go wrong) and removal of the helpful local ticket office clerk are all reasons why the Lib Dems have launched local petitions in Regency News in Grange Hill and in Dillons in Brook parade, Chigwell.

We urge people to sign our petition if they value the ability to interact with a human when buying a ticket and if they believe, like us, that the closure of the ticket office sends the wrong signal regarding acceptable levels of service.

Councillors Gavin Stollar, Fergus Maclaine and John Stone, and Alan Lion (Liberal Democrat Focus co-coordinator, Grange Hill)