Out of action for until further notice Camera courtesy of Fujifilm

The automatic ticket dispenser at Brookmans Park station is out of action for the foreseeable future following a weekend break in.

WAGN says it doesn’t know when the machine will be back in action, but an inspector is assessing the damage.

According to a WAGN spokesperson the thieves struck over the weekend using an angle-grinder to cut round the lock.

They then took all the paper money, leaving the coins. They carried out a similar raid at two other local stations.

The spokesman said that the computer mechanism inside, which costs around £20,000, was left intact. That is now being stored in the hope that it can be replaced once a new door has been constructed.

Brookmans Park ticket office is only staffed during the morning with the ticket officer leaving the premises about 10:30. From then on people have to use the machine.

A WAGN spokesperson said that people should now try to buy their ticket in advance of the day of travel or, if that is not possible, buy a Permit to Travel ticket at the station.

If, as is often the case, that machine is out of order, rail travellers are advised to explain the situation to the ticket inspector and buy a valid ticket at the next station or at the end of their journey.

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10 June 2003