The ticket office at Wandsworth Town train station will be closed on Saturdays, if plans by operator South West Trains (SWT) go ahead.

At Earlsfield station ticket office hours on a Sunday will also be reduced - the office opening from 8am to 3:30pm.

SWT justified the move by saying more people were using machines, but Battersea MP Martin Linton, said the office at Wandsworth Town not being open all weekend was ridiculous.

"At a time when there are a record number of passengers using this station and there is a real problem of overcrowding at certain times of day, surely it doesn't make sense to reduce the ticket office opening hours and not to open them at all at weekends," he said.

"With more and more people moving in locally and with further developments on the way, this station is already very busy and will become more so. I appreciate that ticket vending machines are becoming more reliable, but there is such a wide range of tickets available now that it is often best to buy a ticket at a ticket office.

"I will be sending in a public consultation on behalf of my constituent's urging SWT Trains to keep the ticket office open the same hours, if not longer.

"Having ticket offices staffed means a more reliable service as well a allowing passengers to feel safer and more confident at the station."

Julia Brandreth of Battersea and Wandsworth Trade Union Congress added: "It is disgusting that SWT want to further reduce the opening hours of this ticket office at this station, if anything it should be open longer hours based on its usage."

SWT said it was outlining the proposals ahead of a public consultation.

A spokesman said: "The proposed reduction in ticket office opening hours at some stations, should also be seen against the backdrop of other station developments. We are currently investing in installing CCTV at all our mainland stations and on all our trains. We are also introducing a new team of rail community officers to patrol our network, supported and managed by a dedicated team of British Transport Police officers.

"This investment is in the region of £1.8m a year."