I would like to take this opportunity to thank the many people who contributed to our success in stopping the closure of 40 tube station ticket offices.

First and foremost, I would like to thank the passengers who use North Harrow station, because without them none of this would have been possible. Thousands of them are known to me personally, and hundreds of them have become my friends and I cannot thank them enough for not just signing the petition, but also for writing letters of protest about the plans to close the ticket office to the Mayor of London, and others.

Our campaign has always been non-party political and I acknowledge support from many local councillors. In particular I want to pay tribute to the tireless campaigning by Bill Stephenson, Sasi Suresh, Asad Omar, Anjana Patel and Lurline Champagnie. I would also like to thank Bob Blackman, the former London Assembly member for Brent and Harrow who presented the first petition to the then Mayor of London, Ken Livingstone, last summer.

I must, however, reserve the biggest commendation to the two politicians from opposite ends of the political spectrum who have made this remarkable victory entirely possible. Navin Shah, the recently-elected member for Brent and Harrow and the new Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, are men of integrity, and they did exactly "as it says on the tin"; they kept their promises and delivered on their commitment to the people who elected them. I salute them both.

Four more people also deserve to be named in this roll call of honour; they are Richard Williams, chairman of Headstone Residents' Association and Charlie Harris, who is responsible for our campaign website, 3449sayno.com. Also, a petition containing 4,125 names would not have been achieved without help from two truly dedicated North Harrow passengers, Lesley Ralphs and Harihar Patel who have spent hours and hours alongside me collecting signatures for the petition outside the entrance to North Harrow station. Lastly and by no means least, I must also acknowledge the backing of my union, The Transport and Salaried Staff Association (TSSA,) who have organised the London-wide campaign against ticket office closures.

Never once in this year long campaign did I stop believing we would win this battle. The existence of the ticket office, as everybody knows, has always been an issue of more than just selling tickets, and the complete closure would have compromised the safety and security of anyone using the station.

I now look forward to continuing the service I provide for the passengers on weekday mornings with renewed vigour and purpose, and I am truly proud to work at North Harrow station, which has been judged to be the most customer focused and passenger friendly station on the whole of the London Underground network. If there is anyone who contributed to our campaign that I have omitted, I apologise unreservedly and no slight is intended.

Perhaps, though, the one person who made this all possible by giving me the passion and determination to succeed was my late father, also called James, who was the Independent councillor for Pinner during the 1980s. He taught me all I know about campaigning for the community and political lobbying, and he gave me the secrets of how sometimes a "David can slay a Goliath". It is therefore to my father that I dedicate this stunning victory for democracy and people power.

James Bond
North Harrow station