Questions over Renfrewshire rail ticket office proposals

dailyrecord.co.uk:

The importance of rail travel is being "undermined" by the Scottish Government says one politician.Paisley-based Neil Bibby made the remark during a Holyrood exchange as he pressed First Minister Nicola Sturgeon to intervene in a bid to stop proposed cuts to the staffing of ticket offices currently being mooted by outgoing Dutch-owned operator Abellio.The failing outfit are set to hand over control of the Scottish rail network to the new arms-length ScotRail operation overseen by the Scottish Government, after Transport Secretary Michael Matheson ruled out extending Abellio's contract last year.He took the action saying the franchising system was no longer fit for purpose after the company presided over a string of failures, including failing to meet reliability standards on many services.But Abellio drew criticism after announcing last week that they were to consult over cuts in staffing at many stations including the ticket offices at Paisley Gilmour Street, Johnstone and Bishopton.Under the plans tickets offices would shut earlier in the evenings and three Scottish stations including Clydebank, will have offices shut permanently.Rail union RMT have branded the plans "regressive" and slammed a decision to allow Abellio to axe station hours when they are set to be ousted as rail operator from April 1.Labour's furious West of Scotland list MSP Neil questioned premier Ms Sturgeon over the issue in the Scottish Parliament last week.He asked the First Minister for the government's response to the plans to slash opening hours at 120 stations in addition to the three planned closures, saying: "Ticket office staff play a crucial role in making our railways safe and accessible.