Ticket office closures "annihilated"

9:44am Thursday 19th June 2008

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TICKET offices at Tube stations across London which were under threat will not be closed following campaigns by local residents, politicians, and underground staff.

Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, promised yesterday to "obliterate" the closure programme, which had threatened the existence of more 40 ticket offices.

In an answer to a question from Navin Shah, assembly member for Brent and Harrow, Mr Johnson said: "I will not close the North Harrow ticket office."

When pressed about the future of the other offices, he said: "We want to feel safe on public transport on the tube.

"Even if you are not using a bought ticket, there's going to be someone there if something scary happens on the tube home.

"They are not going to have to fend for themselves and that is why it's very important that this happens.

"Consider the threat has been lifted, annihilated, vapourised, liquidated, exterminated, removed, obliterated, as of now."

Campaigners have been fighting for a year to stop the closure programme, particularly at North Harrow station.

They raised two petitions, with more than 7,500 names, demanding the policy first proposed by former Mayor Ken Livingstone, be reversed.

Mr Johnson honoured his pledge to stop the closure programme yesterday, having signed one of the petitions during his election campaign and put the policy at the heart of his mayoral election manifesto.