Campaign to overturn proposed closure of train ticket offices in England and Glasgow

RNIB successfully campaigned against the closure of train ticket offices in England and Glasgow, securing a U-turn by government just four months after the proposals were first announced. Here’s how:

In July 2023, The Rail Delivery Group (RDG) unveiled plans to close all train station ticket offices in England and Glasgow.

Closing train station ticket offices would have had a detrimental impact on blind and partially sighted people and their ability to travel independently on the train network.

RNIB research shows that only three per cent of people with sight loss said they could use a ticket vending machine without problems, 58 per cent said it was impossible. As well as accessibility problems with online ticket websites and apps, they immediately exclude the large number of blind and partially sighted people without internet or smartphones.

In response to the announcement RNIB: - Proactively and reactively jumped on media opportunities, securing widespread coverage for our messages. - The campaigned successfully to stopped the proposed plans, and a U-turn was announced by the government in October 2023.