Thank you comrade Crow for dragging us back to the 1970s and 80s. This morning as commuters fought tooth and nail to get on packed buses or some of the few trains that were actually running, I think many Londoners and visitors to the City genuinely hate Bob Crow for the massive disruption he has caused, not to mention the 50million quid a day this underground strike is costing.
And for what? A group of ticket office workers who for decades have been singularly unhelpful, and that's when you can actually find one to serve you, who will then inevitably send you to the next counter where another worker is reading the paper.
Of course it's never good to see jobs lost, but this is a definite case of a business evolving and utilising technology for the good of its customers. Fewer than 3% of tube journeys start with passengers visiting a ticket office and manned ticket offices won't be missed by Londoners. I'm only sad that it has taken so long to get to the point where we are able to bring in machines to sort out the mess. There is no doubt that the automated option will be more efficient, offer better customer service, and best of all, be ineligible to be press ganged into the RMT union.
Maybe if this ticket office workers had been a little more helpful, or even friendly, when they had us by the balls for so many years we wouldn't be so keen to see the back of them? But I think I speak for many when I say - they weren't, and we are!
Mr Crow and the RMT might be feeling pleased with their efforts right now, but the last laugh will be on a touch screen, wishing a customer a 'nice day', as they collect their ticket. When the computers take over the London Underground there will be no reminiscing about the good old days when humans cheerfully helped passengers on their way, because they didn't. They were generally a workshy bunch of shirkers, and that is how they will be remembered when they are all gone.
If it takes the London Underground being given special status by the government because of its economic importance, then I for one am all for this legislation to be rushed through the house, like a ticket office 'worker' going to lunch.
Ticket office workers, this strike is likely to be your last throw of the dice; we don't need you, and we have no emotional ties to you that make us want you to stick around. I hope you realise that Bob Crow and his union cronies have put you up like Turkeys praying for Christmas, with the sole purpose of fighting one last round in their 20th century class war. And while you're thinking on that one perhaps you might cast your mind back to how a similar struggle ended for Scargill & Co 30 odd years ago. And guess what? Before that dispute people actually liked coal miners.