Breaking late this evening, the rail strikes that were planned were due to run by the RMT Union have been suspended.
According to the RMT, they has suspended planned strikes on November 5, 7 and 9 and will now enter into a period of intensive negotiations with Network Rail and the train operating companies.
The current dispute remains very much live, and the union is continuing its re-ballot of members to secure a fresh mandate for action with the result due on 15th November.
RMT general secretary Mick Lynch said:
“The threat of strike action and our strongly supported industrial campaign has made the rail employers see sense.
“We have always wanted to secure a negotiated settlement and that is what we will continue to push for in this next phase of intensive talks.
“Our priority is our members, and we are working towards securing a deal on job security, a decent pay rise and good working conditions.
“Our re-ballot remains live and if we have to take strike action during the next 6 months to secure a deal, we will.”
Original Article below – note that strikes by other unions may run during other dates
Original Post
If you have plans involving taking the train this weekend, you might want to think again, as there is another UK-Wide National Rail Strike about to kick off.
A sea of cancellations – Image, Economy Class and Beyond.
Dates for the next set of strikes that will impact nationwide include:
- Saturday 5th November
- Monday 7th November
- Wednesday 9th November
In addition, other unions are conducting strikes on:
- Sunday 6th November
- Tuesday 8th November
Finally, London Overground and Underground workers are planning to strike on the 10th of October.
We are going to concentrate on the national strikes.
What routes will operate?
Network Rail has provided a handy map:
Source: National-Industrial-Action-Disruption-Nov-5-9.pdf (networkrail.co.uk)
Which train companies are impacted by the strike?
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 Wales
- West Midlands Railway
What times will trains operate, if they do?
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.
Even during those operational hours, expect the services to start very late and finish early so journeys can be completed by 18:30.
The day after, services will be late in starting – so plan before you travel.
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.
Connecting London Heathrow:
- Heathrow Express is running services but is impacted by a late start/early finish.
- Elizabeth Line is expected to be heavily impacted.
- The Piccadilly Line is operating normally
Connecting other airports near London
- Gatwick Express will not operate services. Use Southern or Thameslink services to reach Gatwick
- Stansted Express will operate two trains an hour between London Liverpool Street and Stansted.
- Luton Airport will be served by Thameslink and EMR with a limited service
Where can I get further information?
National Rail Enquiries should be your first port of call, who have a dedicated page at https://www.nationalrail.co.uk/service_disruptions/industrialaction.aspx.
Also, can check with the individual train operators listed above.
If you are planning to travel over the next week, allow a lot of extra time for your journey and expect trains that do operate to be a lot more packed than usual.
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