Two Amtrak ticket booths have officially closed along the Hi-Line – one in Shelby, and the other in Havre.
Customers will no longer be able to buy tickets from the offices in Shelby and Havre, but will still be able to catch the train at those stations, and can buy tickets online or by calling Amtrak.
The closure of the staffed ticket-counters comes after reports from Amtrak stating that more customers are buying tickets online and on mobile apps.
Shelby and Havre are two of the 18 ticket counter location across the country that are closing because they have fewer than 40 passengers a day.
Last week, Havre City Commissioners hosted a public forum as a formal protest for residents.
“I’m just disappointed that they weren’t able to at least work with us a little more. We didn’t get much information for the closure or how things were going to work. We still have a lot of questions they haven’t gotten back to us on,” said Mayor Solomon.
People voiced their opinions, heard from Senators Tester and Daines, as well as an Amtrak employee.
“I don’t know what else we can do other than keep on with our legislators. We’ll continue to see what we can do but once it’s gone, I think it’s going to be hard to ever bring it back,” Solomon said.
The stations now will have caregivers whose responsibilities will be to open and close the stations and be there for when passengers leave and arrive.
(MAY 7, 2018) Two people will be out of a job with Amtrak on June 1, according to the Havre Daily News.
The National Passenger Rail Corp. told them they are eliminating the Amtrak-staffed ticket office.
According to the Havre Daily News, Amtrak spokesman Marc Magliari said almost all tickets — more than 9 out of 10 — are now bought online or using Amtrak’s telephone ticket sale service, so the passenger rail service is eliminating some ticket offices.
He said people will still be able to buy tickets at the train, but that will eliminate getting any kind of deal such as through early booking. If space is available on the train, people can buy a ticket but paying in cash while boarding ensures they will pay the highest possible fare, he said.
You can read more at the Havre Daily News website.
MTN News has not yet been able to confirm reports that the ticket counter at the Shelby station will also be closed; we will update you when we get more information.
We have tried contacting the mayor of Havre for comment, but have not heard back.
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