24H Tube/ Trains & Union

[tamborine]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-25025888

"We shall be launching a joint campaign with Labour to reverse this decision."

Havent unions heard of Oyster cards? Surely the unions can see job prospects, and passenger convenience.

'Campaign with Labour' - cmon Dave do a maggie.

[Gromit]

TfL which runs the underground have seen its budget slashed by the Government. So they cutting jobs to balance the books. RMT will be talking to a future Labour Government to restore proper funding, for what is, an integral part of London's Transport System.

New technology has a place to play in selling tube tickets, but I suspect the loss of a manned ticket office will be inconvenient to many, including elderly people, and will lead to more ticket fraud, and more dangerous stations.

[andy-hughes]

If - as advised, the ticket office staff are to be redeployed into the stations, and there is no loss of salary or conditions, then I would tend to see this move as the inevitable march of progress.

The notion of buying tickets for travel is becmong increasingly outmoded - when attempting to catch a bus last weekend in London, I was astounded to hear that drivers do not issue tickets, or deal in cash for replacement buses when tube lines are closed for upgrade.

A cashless society marches inexorably towards us - this is timply one more step.

From a purely emotional point of view, i would bew sorry to see the offices go, but then again, I was sad when Routemaster buses were withdrawn - business is not built on sentiment.

[youngmafbog]

The majority of the ticket office staf simply point a stubby finger at the machine, especially if it is a foreigner they cant understand.

Folk on the floor I have found helpful though.

//to restore proper funding//

So folks across the UK should fund Londoners travel ? Hmm, a novel idea.

[Zacs-Master]

YMB, so only Londoners use TfL services?

[Gromit]

Ymb
They do. The rest of the UK had their bus services deregulated. Everywhere except London. The tax payer funds TfL who run the services. In Birmingham, Manchester etc competing private operators bid for routes. Most MPs commute in London, so their buses were never deregulated.

[mushroom25]

gromit, what you've writ is not strictly correct. whilst London bus services were not deregulated, franchises are competitively tendered for by private operators who have strict contract terms (ie buses must be red, must accept oyster cards etc). thus effectively London bus services are privatized.

whilst services in the rest of the uk are deregulated, mention of Birmingham and Manchester is not representative of that since services in the PTE areas (Manchester, west midlands, south yourkshire, etc) are funded by the relevant transport authority who tenders services, regulates fares, etc, much as TfL do in London.