By Rachael Grealish
As industrial action continues into Spring, we’ve got the answer to what many have been wondering – when are rail strikes going ahead in the UK?
The RMT and Aslef unions have held a series of strikes since last summer in a dispute with the government and rail companies over pay, job cuts and changes to terms and conditions.
Unions say any pay offer should reflect the rising cost of living – currently above 10%.
When Are Rail Strikes Going Ahead?
Now the National Rail Delivery Group has warned passengers to expect disruption on March 16 and 18, as well as March 30 and April 1 as the RMT leadership calls a series of walk-outs for members in train operating companies.
This is the start of the Easter school holidays for many.
What lines will be affected?
The strikes will affect services on 14 train companies with trains due to start later and finish much earlier than usual – typically between 7.30am and 6.30pm.
It is expected that nationally between 40 and 50 per cent of train services will run, but there will be wide variations across the network, with no services at all in some areas.
The lines expected to be affected, according to Trainline, include;
- Avanti West Coast
- Chiltern Railways
- CrossCountry
- East Midlands Railway
- Gatwick Express
- Great Northern
- Great Western Railway
- Greater Anglia and Stansted Express
- Heathrow Express
- LNER
- London Northwestern Railway
- Northern
- South Western Railway
- Southeastern
- Southern
- Thameslink
- TransPennine Express
- West Midlands Railway
What do the union leaders say?
RMT general secretary Mick Lynch said: “Rail employers are not being given a fresh mandate by the government to offer our members a new deal on pay, conditions and job security.
“Therefore, our members will now take sustained and targeted industrial action over the next few months.
“The government can settle this dispute easily by unshackling the rail companies.
“However, its stubborn refusal to do so will now mean more strike action across the railway network and a very disruptive overtime ban.
“Ministers cannot continue to sit on their hands hoping this dispute will go away as our members are fully prepared to fight tooth and nail for a negotiated settlement in the months ahead.”
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