Residents who have seen the number of post offices in their area halved are protesting against further threats to the service.

More than 1,000 people in Marston, Oxford, have signed a petition asking the Government to rethink its plan to withdraw the Post Office card account.

Petition organiser Mick Haines, of Croft Road, Marston, intends to travel to London on Wednesday to present the 1,029 signatures to Downing Street.

Residents are concerned that the end of the card account scheme, which allows people to have their benefits, pensions or tax credits paid directly into a Post Office account, will mean the area's last remaining post office branches will close.

Branches in William Street, New Marston, and in Oxford Road, Old Marston, closed down two years ago during the 'Urban Reinvention Network', which saw nine Oxfordshire sub-post offices close in an effort to keep the remaining ones profitable.

That left residents with only two branches, one in Old Marston Road, and one in Westlands Drive, in Northway.

Mr Haines said: "It is the Old Marston Road post office, at the back of Costcutters, that people are really concerned about.

"There are lots of old people in the Bradlands sheltered housing in Old Marston village that really have no choice but to use it, because there is no branch near them now.

"A lot of them have signed this. There is a lot of strong feeling to keep the branch open."

Sub-postmasters warned that thousands of branches could close as a result of the Government's decision, announced early this year, not to renew the Post Office card account contract when it expires in 2010.

Around four million people use the service across the country, and it is feared that customers will stop using other Post Office services when payments go into bank accounts.