Drivers have been warned that roads across Greater Manchester will be busier next week as rail staff are set to stage a national walkout over pay and job cuts. And travellers using rail networks have been urged to plan ahead and find alternative travel, with limited services operating throughout the region.
Transport for Greater Manchester have urged passengers to avoid taking the train around the region on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. It comes as the few services operating could also reportedly face last minute cancellations or delays.
The strikes are also set to impact rail journeys throughout the rest of the week too. It follows on from weeks of weekend strikes that have caused travel chaos across the country, with fewer and much busier services. Passengers have been warned tickets will not be accepted on bus or Metrolink services.
READ MORE Andy Burnham 'confident' bus firms will agree to slash fares as he unveils £2-a-journey plan
An update on the Transport for Greater Manchester website also confirmed that Piccadilly Station will only be open from 7am-7pm every day. It read: "The rail union [RMT] has announced that there will be three days of national strike action on the railway network on Tuesday 21, Thursday 23 and Saturday 25 June.
"Across the three days, an extremely limited rail service will operate, and passengers are advised they should not plan to make a journey by train. Any services which do operate will be very busy and could be cancelled at the last minute.
"It's also anticipated that the strikes will impact rail journeys on Monday 20, Wednesday 22, Friday 24 and Sunday 26 June. If you're making a journey on any of these days, we advise you to purchase your ticket in advance, regularly check the status of your journey, arrive early for your train and expect services to be busier than normal.
"There is no ticket acceptance in place on bus or Metrolink services. You will need to purchase a separate bus or Metrolink ticket for your journey."
TfGM said they would also be operating additional double tram services across the network on the affected dates in order to create extra capacity on the network and help people reach their destinations in time. Roads in and around the city centre are expected to be busier as people who would usually travel by train may decide to drive as an alternative.
An update on the National Rail website read: "There will be a very limited service running on the rail network so please only travel by train if necessary. If you do travel, expect severe disruption and plan ahead." TransPennine Express, Northern Rail and West Midlands Railway are among the providers that will be hit by the strikes.
Shadow levelling up secretary Lisa Nandy called on the Government to “listen seriously” to workers’ concerns. She told Sky News’ Sophy Ridge on Sunday: “We (Labour) would get round the table with the workers that Grant Shapps was calling true heroes only a couple of years ago and listen seriously to their concerns.
"It’s not just that they’ve had years of pay cuts, it’s also that they’ve got serious safety concerns about what is happening on the railways. It’s not about whether workers go on strike, it’s about the fact that we’ve got a Government that is currently on strike and not doing its job.
“Grant Shapps (Transport Secretary) has got some brass neck to come on your programme when this Government is presiding over soaring inflation rates, the highest in 30 years, and has no plan to tackle the cost of living. They’ve dragged their feet on it for months and they’ve got no plan to get growth back into the economy.
“This is a Government that in 2019 came to power on a promise to level up and instead what they’ve presided over is absolute chaos. Chaos at the ports, chaos on the railways, chaos at airports, chaos everywhere you go, and that is because this is a Government that is not doing its job.”
Meanwhile Shapps warned the country's biggest railway union that the strikes will be a “huge act of self-harm” which could jeopardise the future of the industry.
