Train drivers working for seven train operators and who are members of the Associated Society of Locomotive Engineers and Firemen (Aslef) will walk out on Saturday 30 July. There will also be an impact on Sunday 31 July.
These are the key questions and answers.
Why are the train drivers strike and which train operators are affected?
Aslef called the strike “after train companies failed to make a pay offer to keep pace with the increase in the cost of living”.
The leader of the train drivers’ union, Mick Whelan, said: “We don’t see why we should forego an increase in salary to keep pace with inflation and help the privatised train companies make even bigger profits to send abroad.”
The Rail Delivery Group (RDG), representing train operators, believes pay increases must be linked to productivity.
An RDG spokesperson said: “We want to offer train drivers a pay rise but a fair deal also means working with us to deliver reforms which deliver the better punctuality and reliability to services in general and particularly on Sundays that we know our passengers want.”
Drivers working for the following train operators will strike:
- Greater Anglia
- Great Western
- Hull Trains
- LNER
- London Overground (Arriva Rail London)
- Southeastern
- West Midlands Trains
Many train operators, including Southern, Thameslink, South Western Railway, Transport for Wales, Chiltern Railways, Avanti West Coast, Northern, TransPennine Express, East Midlands Railway and ScotRail, are unaffected.
Will any trains run at all for companies whose drivers are striking?
Not on London Overground or Southeastern.
Andy Lord, chief operating officer for Transport for London, said: “Planned strike action on the national rail network on Saturday will mean disruption for our customers. With no service expected on the entire London Overground network, I advise all customers to check before they travel and use alternative routes to complete their journeys.”
In the capital, there are generally options for all journeys that would normally involve the London Overground – though these are likely to take much longer.
Southeastern, which normally runs between London, East Sussex and Kent, says: “There will be no Southeastern services running on the rail network. Please do not attempt to travel by train on this day.”
However, a number of locations – including Hastings and stations on the line to Ashford International – are accessible on Southern services.
Where will the strike be most keenly felt?
On Great Western Railway (GWR) and London North Eastern Railway (LNER) – key intercity operators which would expect to have hundreds of thousands of holidaymakers booked on their services.
What is happening on GWR?
The operator says: “Please make alternative travel arrangements and only travel if absolutely necessary” on Sunday as well as Saturday.
Normally tens of thousands of families would be on trains in southwest England and South Wales.
On Saturday an extremely limited service will only operate on the Bristol Temple Meads to London Paddington route, with addition links from Reading to Oxford and Basingstoke.
No trains will run to and from South Wales, the Cotswolds, Devon or Cornwall.
On Sunday there will be no trains from Swindon to Gloucester nor from Oxford to Worcester or Hereford, with a reduced service on other routes.
“Services will start later and finish earlier than normal and are expected to be extremely busy,” says the company.
On the East Coast main line?
On Saturday 30 July, only one LNER train will run from Leeds to London King’s Cross – at 7.15am. But there will be an LNER train every two hours on the main Edinburgh-Newcastle-York-London line, and additional hourly services between York and the English capital.
No LNER trains will run north of Edinburgh to other Scottish stations, but ScotRail services are available.
Early Sunday services could be affected on LNER.
Hull Trains wil run a single service from its home city to London King’s Cross and back on Saturday morning. Three Sunday trains have also been cancelled.
Grand Central, whose drivers are working normally, says: “A full Grand Central service will operate, we expect our services to be extremely busy so please book in advance. Customers who do not have a seat booked may have to stand.” The train operator runs from London King’s Cross to West Yorkshire and Sunderland.
Lumo, which runs on the East Coast main line from London King’s Cross to Newcastle and Edinburgh, will operate normally.
What about Greater Anglia?
One train per hour from Norwich, Southend and London Liverpool Street will run for most of the day, roughly 8am to 8pm, but a longer service to and from Stansted airport – though these are likely to be extremely crowded.
West Midlands Trains?
Only a special shuttle between Birmingham New Street and Birmingham International will run. Avanti West Coast and CrossCountry trains are expected to run normally, allowing some passengers to travel – though you may need to buy new tickets.
Chiltern Railways, which links the West Midlands and Chilterns with London Marylebone, says it intends to run a normal schedule. But it warns: “Services will be exceptionally busy and some services may be cancelled at short notice on Saturday 30 and Sunday 31 due to industrial action and train crew shortages.
“Customers are urged to seek alternative modes of transport and only travel if essential.
“Due to strike action on other operating companies coinciding with the first weekend of the Commonwealth Games, customers should expect to queue at stations in the West Midlands and are advised to plan ahead, check their train before they travel and allow extra time for their journey.”
When is the next strike?
Aslef will stage a bigger stoppage on Saturday 13 August, with two more long-distance operators, Avanti West Coast and CrossCountry, affected.
The train drivers’ union says further ballots will close at Chiltern Railways; Northern Trains; and TransPennine Express on Thursday 25 August; and at East Midlands Railway on Monday 19 September.
The RMT union is staging its next national rail strikes on 18 and 20 August, with a London Underground strike sandwiched between them on 19 August.
