On Feb 1, 9:54*pm, (Neil Williams)
wrote:
On Sun, 01 Feb 2009 13:57:38 -0600, David Jackman pleasereplytogroup
wrote:

But I guess it beats having them closed completely, which was the original
plan.

Not, IMO, an unreasonable plan. *Most German underground systems have
only a very few open one or two days a month for season ticket
renewals, and it is expected that if you want a single, return or day
ticket you just use the machine.

LUL happen to sell quite a lot of obscure through tickets onto the
mainline and the likes, but there is no logical reason why they should
*have* to, any more than I should reasonably be able to buy an
off-peak return to Reddish South via Kempston Hardwick and Thurso with
a railcard, paying partly in rail travel vouchers and partly by credit
card, from the driver of my local bus.

There would have to be a dramatic change in the maintenance of the
machines. Do the German stations have a majority of machines with at
least one function disabled (eg taking cash, taking cards, giving
change, working at all)?