After a period of unity, it is time for rail unions to call their staff out on strike again. Let us dive in because if you’re a member of a certain political party and coming to Birmingham this weekend, you might be paying over the odds for parking (and I can rent you a space at over-the-odds pricing).
What is going to be operating?
Network Rail has provided a map of what passenger services may operate. 11% of services are planned to operate.
Map showing open lines for Saturday 1 October (PDF, 1 MB)
What are the strike dates?
The official strike dates are:
- 1st October
- 5th October
- 8th October
Note that ASLEF members will strike on the 1st & 5th of October and RMT members will strike on the 1st and 8th of October.
In addition, strike action by staff for the following companies will run alongside
- East Midlands Railway on Thursday 6 and Friday 7 October
- Great Western Railway on Thursday 6 and Friday 7 October
- ScotRail on Monday 10 October
However, there will be a knock-on effect from before the strikes to way after – enough to consider writing off rail travel next week. Most operators are noting that services outside strike days will start late and finish earlier, as crews and trains will be out of position.
What routes are open?
There is a major impact on the network, with many rural and low-trafficked routes closed as you can see from the map above. Compared to previous strikes, a lot more routes will see minimal to no services. A high-resolution PDF map can be found here.
Noteablably, there are no trains between London and Edinburgh, Manchester, Liverpool, Birmingham, Newcastle and Norwich.
Which train companies are impacted?
The full list is below (with each site’s strike notes).
For completeness, here are the confirmed plans of each train operating company:
- Avanti West Coast
- c2c
- Caledonian Sleeper
- Chiltern Railways
- CrossCountry
- East Midlands Railway
- Elizabeth line
- Gatwick Express
- Grand Central
- Great Northern
- Great Western Railway
- Greater Anglia / Stansted Express
- Heathrow Express
- Hull Trains
- LNER
- London Northwestern Railway
- London Overground
- Lumo
- Merseyrail
- Northern
- ScotRail
- Southeastern
- Southern
- South Western Railway / Island Line
- Thameslink
- TransPennine Express
- Transport for London
- Transport for Wales
- West Midlands Railway
What times will trains operate… if they are?
Limited operations on these days will be from 07:30 to 18:30 during strike days. Expect the barest of bare-bones services, with capacity, with hourly or half-hourly services running, with late starting times and very early finishes.
Even during those operational hours, expect the services to start very late and finish early so journeys can be completed by 18:30.
Are services to airports impacted?
Yes. If you arrive outside the designated service hours, you will need to find an alternative way from your airport to your final destination. The reverse applies if travelling to the airport.
Serving the London Region:
- Heathrow Express is not running any services. In addition, they are impacted by the Great Western Railway strike.
- Elizabeth Line is expected to be heavily impacted.
- The Piccadilly Line is operating as a bus-only option between Heathrow and Acton Town.
TfL advises passengers to use Elizabeth line trains when they are operating, else to use the replacement buses to travel to and from Heathrow.
- Gatwick Express will not operate services. Use Southern or Thameslink services instead, with two trains an hour operating on the London Victoria/London Bridge to Brighton Line.
- Stansted Express will operate one train an hour between London Liverpool Street and Stansted.
The DLR to London City Airport is unaffected, however, it is expected to be a lot busier than normal.
Can I get a refund?
According to National Rail:
- If you have a ticket for travel on Saturday 1 October 2022 and your journey is affected, in whole or in part, by one of the train companies undertaking industrial action you can use this ticket to complete your journey either the day before or up to and including Tuesday 4 October 2022.
- If you have a ticket for travel on Wednesday 5 October 2022 and your journey is affected, in whole or in part, by one of the train companies undertaking industrial action you can use this ticket to complete your journey either the day before or up to and including Friday 7 October 2022.
- If you have a ticket for travel on Saturday 8 October 2022 and your journey is affected, in whole or in part, by one of the train companies undertaking industrial action you can use this ticket to complete your journey either the day before or up to and including Tuesday 11 October 2022.
See https://www.nationalrail.co.uk/service_disruptions/industrialaction.aspx
What alternatives are there – if any?
At this point of the game, it might be possible to catch a Megabus, Flixbus or National Express service, but expect them to be packed.
Local transport options such as buses and trams will feel the impact of the strikes, with them expected to be a lot busier than normal.
For those who wish to utilise taxis, rideshares or even hire a car, expect the surge rates to be your best enemy.
As for hotels and such, expect pressure on them this week too.
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