Rotherham Central ticket office to close in station cutbacks

Rail operator Northern said it was keeping just 18 station ticket offices, with 131 to lose their facility.

Rotherham is not on the list of the offices to be saved, meaning passengers must book online or use ticket machines to buy their ticket when the move comes into force.

Northern said the chosen offices would be cut over an 18-month period following consultation due to end on July 26.

“Across many areas of life, the way people access services and buy products has changed,” said the rail company in a statement.

“Northern customers are no different and we need to modernise to respond to their changing needs

“As customer habits have changed, people have moved to other, more convenient ways of buying tickets. 

“Many people prefer to buy online or use apps, a trend that is expected to continue.

“As the railways adapts to evolving customer behaviour and to ensure that it can thrive in the long-term, the industry needs to modernise how rail tickets are sold.”

The company said just 12 per cent of ticket sales nationally and one in six on Northern services were made through a ticket office.

Independent watchdog Transport Focus urged people to fill in its online consultation form, noting: “Having people comment on specific stations or at a train company level helps ensure that any views/objections expressed are recorded against the appropriate consultation. 

“This is why we have listed separate contact addresses for each train company. 

“However, any responses commenting at a national level or on a more generic basis will still be recorded and counted.”

Visit https://www.transportfocus.org.uk/train-station-ticket-office-consultation/ or https://www.northernrailway.co.uk/consultation-2023 to have your say.