A county councillor has called for clarity on the future of the ticket office at Berwick Railway Station.
Plans to reform ticket office provision across the country were announced by then transport secretary and Berwick MP Anne Marie Trevelyan following a huge drop in the number of ticket sales from offices between 1995 and 2022.
An announcement is expected on the future of ticket offices this week, with the Rail Delivery Group insisting that any changes would be subject to consultations with both the public and staff.
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But Coun Georgina Hill, who represents the Berwick East ward, believed closing the ticket office would have a negative impact on passengers.
The rail campaigner said: "This is a measure to reduce staffing costs to the huge detriment of customer service and passenger experience. No thought is being given to the elderly, those with learning and other difficulties or those who just want to speak to a human being when they navigate their travel options.
"Rail policy has been a disaster area under successive governments over decades and this should be considered in the context of the plan to spend £100bn on HS2."
Coun Hill said she had asked LNER for urgent clarity on the issue. The Local Democracy Reporting Service also approached the company, but was directed to the Rail Delivery Group - the membership body bringing together passenger and freight rail companies.
Responding to Coun Hill's comments, the RDG hit out at transport union the RMT over a lack of progress with ongoing rows over reform.
A spokesman said: "The industry has always been open and honest about the need for the railway to evolve. For over a year it has been negotiating a package with the RMT on those reforms, which include moving staff from ticket offices to concourses where they will be better able to help more customers, not just with buying tickets, but also offering travel advice and helping those with accessibility needs.
"This is in recognition of the fact that ticket office sales have dropped from 85% in 1995 to 12% on average today. Sadly, those talks have stalled with the RMT executive’s repeated refusal to put an offer of up to 13% over two years for the lowest paid - alongside job guarantees - to its membership to a vote
"The railway is too vital to those who depend on it for negotiations to continue to go round in circles with a union seemingly intent on prolonging the current dispute.
"While the industry is now looking at how to move forward, any changes would be subject to employee and public consultations. Staff always remain front of mind so as you would expect from a responsible employer, if and when the time comes for proposals on ticket offices to be published, they will be the first to know.”
The RMT has said it totally opposes ticket office closures and argued it would put passengers off using services.
RMT general secretary Mick Lynch said: "The removal of ticket offices from the railways would create the conditions for a muggers paradise on the railways. We already have de-staffing at stations which is leaving the staff that remain vulnerable and putting people off using our railways.
"Ticket offices serve multiple purposes on stations, including a place where elderly people and the vulnerable can seek assistance. Ticket offices are also secure locations that provide a place of safety and security for staff and passengers, including during emergencies or disruption.
"We are totally opposed to ticket office closures and a railway that is run on the cheap for the maximum profit of private companies. Our strike action on 20,22 and 29 July on the 14 train operating companies, is part of our resistance to ticket office closures."
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