UK train passengers have been warned to expect a week of disruption to services as rail workers prepare to go on strike once again.
Up to 40,000 members of the RMT union are due to walk out again on 5, 7 and 9 November in an ongoing dispute over pay, jobs and conditions. The union has held a series of 24-hour strikes during the summer and autumn, which have largely crippled the UK rail network on these days.
The Rail Delivery Group (RDG), which represents the train operators, advised passengers only to travel on these strike days “if absolutely necessary”, with only about 20 per cent of scheduled services likely to run and no trains at all in some areas. Services will also start later and end earlier than normal.
RDG said there was also likely to be “some disruption” to services on the days immediately following the strike dates as workers return to their jobs.
The dispute affects the following 14 train operators: Chiltern Railways, Cross Country Trains, Greater Anglia, LNER, East Midlands Railway, c2c, Great Western Railway, Northern Trains, South Eastern, South Western Railway, TransPennine Express, Avanti West Coast, West Midlands Trains and GTR (including Gatwick Express).
Special timetables for the three strike dates will be published four days before each of the scheduled walkouts.
Steve Montgomery, chair of the Rail Delivery Group, said: “While we will do all that we can to minimise disruption, if you are going to travel on the routes affected, please plan ahead and check the latest travel advice.
“Passengers with advance, off-peak or anytime tickets affected by the strikes can use their ticket for travel the day before the date on the ticket or up to and including 11 November.”
Adding to the transport woe, London Underground and Overground services will be disrupted on 10 November due to industrial action taking place over a separate dispute.
Other rail trade unions, including TSSA and Unite, are also taking their own strike action during this period, which will affect some UK services.
Andrew Haines, Network Rail’s chief executive, said a “fair and affordable” deal for RMT workers “remains on the table”. He called for union members to be allowed to vote on this package.
“These strikes undermine the railway’s recovery from the pandemic and drive passengers away at a time when everyone involved in the railway should be focused on attracting more passengers, at the same time as building a railway fit for the future,” added Haines.
But RMT general secretary Mick Lynch said rail operators have “yet to make an offer that will create the conditions for a negotiated settlement”.
“I call upon the new prime minister Rishi Sunak to unshackle the rail industry so they can come to a settlement with RMT,” added Lynch. “We will vigorously pursue our industrial campaign until we achieve a deal.”