Train strikes: Passengers face disruption with only a fifth of services running

Train passengers face more disruption with only 20% of services running due to strikes.

Half of Britain’s routes will be closed on Thursday and Saturday as more than 45,000 railway workers pull out in disputes over wages and conditions.

Some places have no services and where they operate, trains only run between 07:30 and 18:30 BST on both strike days.

Passengers are instructed to travel by train only when necessary.

It is the latest in a series of summer strikes and will change the travel plans of workers, festival goers and those traveling to the Lords cricket test match in London.

According to Network Rail, a total of around 4,300 trains will run across the country on Thursday and Saturday. This is the highest number so far during the RMT union’s series of nationwide strikes.

However, it’s still just over 20% of the usual level of service.

Some places including Portsmouth, Swansea and Blackpool will have no trains at all and there will be no services north of Falkirk.

The services will also be terminated earlier. For example, the last train from London to Edinburgh on Thursday departs at 2:00 p.m., while the last train to Leeds departs at 3:05 p.m.

Even on the days after the strikes, trains run later than usual.

The involvement of Network Rail signal workers in England, Wales and Scotland makes the RMT strike particularly disruptive.

Train operation without an interlocking is not possible, and only a fraction can operate with the available emergency personnel.

If customers are unable to travel on Thursday or Saturday, these tickets can be used either the day before or up to and including August 23, according to Rail Delivery Group. Otherwise, customers can change the ticket or request a refund.

Thursday’s strikes involve RMT union members at 14 train operators, TSSA members at seven companies and Unite members at Network Rail.

Meanwhile, both the London Underground and the Tube will be hit by RMT strike action on Friday, in a separate dispute over pensions and salaries.

Transport for London (TfL) says people should avoid the Tube, which has little or no service, and only use the rest of the network when absolutely necessary.

Some bus services will also be affected as drivers take part in a strike called by the Unite union.

The train disruption summer continues.

Today marks the start of four straight days of reduced traffic as disruptions on the day of the strike spread to later departing trains the next day.

The rail industry says these nationwide strikes are costing them up to £30m a day.

And three weeks after the last nationwide RMT strike, solutions to the ongoing disputes don’t seem much closer.

A cohort of managers who are in the TSSA have reached an agreement with Network Rail – but other groups in the union have not reached agreements with their employers.

Last month, the RMT rejected Network’s Rail’s latest salary offer – although they insisted the union should make it to its members first.

Talks since have failed to produce an agreement to prevent these latest strikes.

There has been even less progress on the railways.

Unions have repeatedly accused the government of failing to facilitate effective negotiations, but the transport minister has insisted only employers and unions can resolve their disputes.

Lucy Westwood spent an extra £100 on a hotel and petrol to take her children to the theater on Thursday.

Her original plan had been to take the train from Litchfield to London to see Back to the Future. She had bought cheap theater tickets for “Kids Week” in August, where children get cheaper tickets.

“I had family homecoming one day – everything sorted and planned, but then I heard about the strikes,” said Lucy.

She didn’t get a refund from the theater and was offered to exchange her tickets, but couldn’t afford to pay the difference for a more expensive date.

Instead, she plans to drive and has booked a hotel on the outskirts of London to break up the journey home.

“It made things a lot harder, I was stuck with tickets I couldn’t get a refund for and two very disappointed kids,” she said.

“It’s the highlight of our week but it’s costing me a lot more than getting the train, which is really frustrating.”

Mick Lynch, general secretary of the RMT union, said members wanted to protect their pensions and get a fair pay rise.

He said Network Rail and the rail companies had made “no improvement” on their previous wage offer.

Steve Montgomery, Chairman of the Rail Delivery Group, which represents rail companies, said: “Rail is vital to this country, but with ridership still 20% below 2019 levels, securing a strong future means that we have to change and move with it.

“Only then can we fund the pay rise we want to give our employees while still providing the more reliable Sunday services and improved punctuality our passengers deserve.”

Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said it was “clear” unions were “intent on inflicting as much misery as possible” on the same taxpayers who are putting up £600 per household to ensure not a single rail worker lost his job during the pandemic .