Closed petition Open stations on the railways. Remove ticket barriers

Closed on 17 August 2013

Around 20 years ago the former British Rail had a policy of open stations, which are the norm in continental Europe. This allows family and friends to accompany passengers to and from trains, and means that travellers who, for whatever reason, have been unable to buy a ticket in advance, can pay the conductor, albeit at a premium, rather than miss their train. Since privatisation, ticket barriers have steadily been reintroduced, in the form of automated gates. This is not the case elsewhere in Europe, where it is felt that the general inconvenience they cause outweighs any potential benefit in terms of fare revenue. If ticket checking on board the train is carried out as efficiently as it should be, there is no need for fixed barriers at stations and they should be removed in most cases.