LOCAL transport body Merseytravel has come in for a bit of stick in recent times.
Many have been unimpressed with its dogged and expensive pursuit of the doomed Merseytram project as well as its decision to pay top-of-the-market rates for its gleaming new Liverpool headquarters.
So you would hope at least they would aim to get the basics right. Er, not quite.
Rail operator Merseyrail has announced an upgrade of James Street Station.
The statement on its website says passengers on the Wirral line would be unable to alight from the station, below, while the work was being carried out and instead would have to exit from other stations.
However, it wasn’t made totally clear as to whether passengers could still get on trains as normal at the station.
On confused punter rang the usually very helpful Merseytravel information line.
The lady on the end of the phone proceeded to read out the Merseyrail statement.
“I’ve read that,” said the caller. “I want to know whether I can actually catch a train there.”
The operator then informed him that “we are Merseytravel not Merseyrail” and that the only information she had was what was on the statement.
The customer pressed her further on the question of whether he could board at James Street.
No, she eventually told him, you will have to catch a train to Wirral from one of the other stations on the loop.
Wrong answer as it turned out – passengers can board at James Street. Oh dear.
