Topic
Topic ID 6891
20/11/2012 by Ewoowar
Why only 1 member of ticket staff just before 9:30
At 09:30 the cheap tickets start. So many travellers choose to travel after this time. It also avoids the packed trains full of commuters.
So why is there usually just a single member of ticket staff just prior to 09:30 having to manage a queue of passengers even when all three ticket machines are also in use?
Last Friday at 09:25 there was the one member of ticket staff, a queue of at least ten passengers, probably all hoping to be on the 09:33 to London, and all the ticket machines in use. To make matters worse there were two ticket inspectors on the other side of the barriers...........why? Why couldn't one of them open up another ticket counter and get all the passengers through rather than gassing?
Replies
Reply ID 91129
20/11/2012 by buzz
quote:
Originally posted by Ewoowar
At 09:30 the cheap tickets start. So many travellers choose to travel after this time. It also avoids the packed trains full of commuters.
So why is there usually just a single member of ticket staff just prior to 09:30 having to manage a queue of passengers even when all three ticket machines are also in use?
Last Friday at 09:25 there was the one member of ticket staff, a queue of at least ten passengers, probably all hoping to be on the 09:33 to London, and all the ticket machines in use. To make matters worse there were two ticket inspectors on the other side of the barriers...........why? Why couldn't one of them open up another ticket counter and get all the passengers through rather than gassing?
Oh come on! They are railway staff. I believe it's in their contracts of employment to be as unhelpful to customers as they possibly can!
Reply ID 91131
20/11/2012 by Steve
Is this Hertford East or Hertford North?
Reply ID 91133
20/11/2012 by Donostia
quote:
Originally posted by Steve
Is this Hertford East or Hertford North?
2 ticket inspectors gassing at the barriers , definitely North . [:D]
Reply ID 91134
20/11/2012 by Ewoowar
Yes, Donostia, Hertford North.
Reply ID 91159
21/11/2012 by Kateg28
There are almost always inspectors at Hertford North but to be fair I find them really helpful and smiley at around 6.50am when I am there. My ticket no longer works in the barriers so cannot use the automated barriers. Ought to get a new ticket but there is only one ticket office open and always takes ages to replace the ticket (had to do it many times before) and it expires in a few weeks.
Reply ID 91210
22/11/2012 by rogerstone
quote:
Originally posted by Kateg28
There are almost always inspectors at Hertford North but to be fair I find them really helpful and smiley at around 6.50am when I am there. My ticket no longer works in the barriers so cannot use the automated barriers. Ought to get a new ticket but there is only one ticket office open and always takes ages to replace the ticket (had to do it many times before) and it expires in a few weeks.
I had exactly this issue - it seems mine was caused by the proximity of my Blackberry. I now keep my ticket in a shielded wallet & have had no problems since - apart from the printing wearing off the ticket.
Reply ID 91218
22/11/2012 by jez_p
You can get the 9:17 from Hertford North too.
Reply ID 91221
22/11/2012 by Andrew
The 0917 is the first train for cheap tickets as the cgeap ticket rule on the Hertford North line is trains arriving at a London terminal after 1000.
I was at Hertford North this morning at 0907 with 8 people in front of me at the single ticket window. By 0914 I was on the platform, which seems pretty efficient to me.
One reason for the queues is that a one day travel card split at Crews Hill is much cheaper than the all through one day travel card but you can only buy split tickets at the ticket window, so the ticket machines can stand unused as many passengers, understandably, wish to save £4.
Reply ID 91228
23/11/2012 by Drama Queen
Yes £4.00 is a lot of money to wave goodbye to in those ticket machines. I sometimes get them the day before I need them out of the busy times from the ticket office. I just think its disgraceful that the ticket machine isn't giving the customer the correct, cheap fare tickets that we are all legally doing over the counter from the ticket office! If that was sorted out then it would free up a lot of time.. Time for the ticketing systems to be revised big time I think.
9 replies