Commuters could be put off travelling by train if ticket offices are closed, councillors have warned.

Brighton and Hove City Council has written to rail operator Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) expressing their concern at proposals to axe ticket offices and reduce customer assistance hours at almost all stations across the city.

Only ticket offices at Brighton station would survive the closure, which the government has said would help “modernise customer service” and save money.

However, the Labour administration expressed concern that the closures would make travelling by train more difficult for elderly and disabled customers.

In a letter to GTR, the council said: “The proposed arrangements would be very challenging for many customers, especially elderly and disabled customers, many of whom are not tech-savvy and would be put off train travel if they had to try to get assistance from concourse staff.

“Customer assistance would become less available if the assistance is moved to concourses, and experienced ticket office staff would choose to leave the role if they are moved onto concourses, on the frontline of antisocial behaviour.”

Councillor Trevor Muten, chairman of the city’s transport and sustainability committee, said: “These proposals would have a detrimental impact on many of the city’s residents and visitors, many of whom rely on train travel to commute, visit friends and family or simply want to come and enjoy everything Brighton and Hove has to offer.

“Train travel is a popular and sustainable form of transport and we need to make it as easy and as safe as possible for people to use.

“By closing ticket offices and reducing customer assistance hours, we fear many customers would be unable to navigate the ticket purchasing process and simply be put off travelling by train.

“We hope GTR listens carefully to the feedback of concerned passengers and staff and reconsider the proposals.”

Councillors and Labour activists gathered outside Brighton station yesterday morning to oppose the planned closures, with council leader Bella Sankey describing the proposals as a “regressive and unfair policy”.

It comes just days after Worthing Borough Council also called for the planned closures to be scrapped.

Worthing council leader Beccy Cooper said the proposals would impact passengers’ access to rail services and best-value fares.

She said: “Disabled people and the elderly in particular already face significant barriers to accessing the rail network and these proposals would only worsen them.

“Interaction with ticket office staff is often vital for these groups and at many stations access to facilities such as toilets, waiting rooms and lifts is dependent on help from ticket office staff.

“Ticket office staff are trained and experienced in dealing with difficult incidents and the presence of staff deters abusive and antisocial behaviour, meaning they are crucial to passenger safety. Roving staff will be much harder to locate and will not present the same deterrent.”

Green councillors in Lewes have also expressed anger at the planned closures and have warned that some services due to be axed "cannot be replaced by ticket machines or other alternatives suggested by rail company management".

Cllr Paul Keene said: "The alternative “service” proposed to replace the staffed ticket offices is not even a pale imitation of what we would lose if these plans proceeded.

"The Conservative government and rail bosses are treating the public with disdain in trying to shut nearly one thousand staffed ticket offices across England.

"It’s more of the same incompetence, arrogance, and contempt we’ve all come to expect from this government."

A consultation about the proposed changes closes today at https://www.transportfocus.org.uk/train-station-ticket-office-consultation/.

Govia Thameslink Railway has been contacted for comment.