Only one railway station in Sussex has signed up to a passenger safety scheme.

Gatwick is the county's sole member of the national Secure Stations Scheme launched six years ago by the Department of Transport and British Transport Police.

Eastbourne station, which in 2005 was named as one of the most dangerous in south-east England, lost its official status as a "secure station" in 2003 when operator Southern did not reapply for accreditation.

Horsham's accreditation lapsed in 2003 and Worthing lost its status a year earlier.

The three stations are among 101 in the UK to have allowed their accreditation to lapse. The figures were revealed to The Argus under the Freedom of information Act.

Toby Bishop, 26, who commutes from Gatwick to London every day, said: "I'm not surprised to hear Gatwick is the only one signed up. It does feel pretty safe. There are lots of guards who make sure you don't step over the yellow lines and it's always clean and tidy. Compared to Haywards Heath and Brighton, I think it's a lot better."

Nigel Waterson, Conservative MP for Eastbourne, said: "There have been major concerns about safety at Eastbourne, particular from local women's groups.

"I am alarmed its accreditation has lapsed. This station is said to have an above-average level of criminality and it's absolutely essential they get back on this safety scheme."

Other rail users said they were not worried to hear stations had not signed up to the scheme, which has more than 260 members.

Rob McIntyre, 28, of Terminus Road, Eastbourne, said: "Just because a station has a badge, it doesn't mean you're not going to get mugged there. I don't think it means the station is safer than any other one."

Joe Tarrant, 23, from Horsham, said: "I feel safe at the station and I've never had any trouble there. I'm surprised it's not accredited."

To win accreditation a station must be designed and managed in a way which helps prevent and reduce crime and makes passengers feel safe.

Before granting accreditation, inspectors study crime statistics at the station over a 12-month period to check problems are being tackled.

In February 2005, The Argus reported that Eastbourne passengers were among the most at risk in south-east England. Twenty-eight violent crimes were recorded between April 2004 and January 2005 - an average of about three a month.

Brighton recorded 30 crimes in the same period.

Southern said all three stations would be reapplying to join the scheme. Applications for Brighton, Lewes and Crawley are also to be submitted this year. A spokesman said: "At the moment we are making sure all the required elements are in place and expect Eastbourne, Horsham and Worthing to be approved as secure stations by August 2006.

"Southern has invested heavily over the past five years in on-train and station security and this issue continues to be at the top of our agenda. Accreditation from the scheme will only reinforce our determination to make all aspects of every Southern passenger's journey even safer."

A spokeswoman from South Eastern, which runs the Hastings to Tunbridge Wells line, said nine stations in Kent were accredited.

She said: "We have got a franchise commitment to enter into the scheme but at the moment, we have not made any decisions about which of our stations will be applying for accreditation."