The train drivers’ union, Aslef, has announced the next round of industrial action in its long and bitter dispute with 14 English train operators over pay, jobs and working conditions. Drivers will walk out on Saturday 30 September and Wednesday 4 October, triggering the cancellation of thousands of trains on each day and wrecking millions of planned journeys.
In addition the union will impose an overtime ban on Friday 29 September and from Monday 2 to Friday 6 October – disrupting rail travel for over a week. The strikes are timed to hit the Conservative Party Conference in Manchester, which begins on Sunday 1 October – the day after the first walk-out – and ends on Wednesday 4 October, the day of the second stoppage.
