Waverley ticket office now a pokey wee hole in the wall, shoved round the corner
There used to be a ticket office in Waverley station. It was just off the beautiful historic booking office, the one with the seats that parents could stick kids on and then go and safely check on train times whilst watching them through the big glass walls.
It was really handy. Well, the toilets were next to them. It’s not there now. It’s been shoved around the corner and renamed the “Travel Centre”. The old office was bright, welcoming and spacious, which was just as well, because I rarely saw it without a queue out the door. Somehow, despite it being called only a Ticket Office, people seemed to know that they could go and ask the very nice people behind the screens about connecting times for trains to Oban, Gatwick or Liverpool.
Yes, all this information was and is available online, but some people don’t have all this high-falutin’ tech, the digital world is full of fibs, and nothing beats the reassurance of a helpful woman called Maureen who actually knows where Bristol Temple Meads actually is. The old office is being turned into a family lounge, a "passenger assist” lounge and, apparently, more retail space. It’s the sort of thing expensive consultants who’ve never set foot in the place advise.
Never really thought Waverley needed more shopping choices, really. There’s a pretty good selection of food and drink, two great places for books and magazines, and a very well-stocked Boots the Chemist. You can even buy the travelling essentials of headphones and charging cables at WH Smith. These selections usually suffice for the concourse crossing shopper.
Not utterly sure why they’re shelling out for a “passenger assist” lounge. Would’ve thought they’d be better ploughing a bit of that cash into actually improving the experience of the travelling public who need assistance.
The new office is a pokey wee hole in the wall, shoved around the corner. On the day we passed, the queue was out the door. Just like old times, but this time it probably had more to do with the tiny space and the fact that only two members of staff were behind the desk.