Management at East Midlands Railway (EMR) are warning people that they should travel only if “absolutely necessary” over the coming month as weeks of strike action gets underway.
Members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union at Network Rail and 14 train companies are launching two 48-hour strikes from Tuesday and Friday. UNITE the Union and TSSA Unions are also involved in industrial action.
Trains will only run from 7.30am to 6.30pm on this week’s strike days, although many parts of the country will have no services, including most of Scotland and Wales.
More walkouts are planned and Network Rail has warned there will be significantly reduced services, with trains more crowded and likely to start later and finish earlier until January 8.
EMR runs regional services across the region as well as mainline services from Sheffield through stops such as Leicester, Nottingham and Derby, down to London.
It said there will be no services at all on Christmas Eve while customers travelling on any day over the next few weeks are urged to double check times in advance – or avoid travel all together.
Services throughout the strike period are expected to be “extremely busy”.
A spokeswoman said: “Throughout this period, EMR services will change, often from day to day, as different unions affect the train operator in different ways.
“However, there will be no EMR services on December 24, and services throughout the strike period are expected to be extremely busy.
“Services will not operate on Christmas Day and Boxing Day as normal.”
EMR managing director Will Rogers said: “Due to industrial action our services will be significantly impacted in the next four weeks.
“Regrettably, we won't be able to run any services on Christmas Eve and throughout the strike period different parts of our network will be significantly affected – while services that are operating will likely be extremely busy.
“It is a complicated picture due to the way each union affects us and therefore we are strongly urging customers to visit our website before planning a journey to understand what services are running.
“Customers should only travel if it’s absolutely necessary and they should leave extra time for disruption and short notice changes.”
Transport Secretary Mark Harper told Sky News: “The detailed negotiations between the employers and the trade unions are between them. The overall amount of money available is something that I have to set, the detail is up to them."
