Further train strikes will impact rail passengers this week - just days after major parts of the network were crippled by the latest round of industrial action.
Picket lines were set up across parts of the UK, including Ashford, London, Hull, Manchester and Liverpool amid disputes over jobs, pay and conditions on Saturday (August 13). Members of Aslef at nine train companies walked out, leading to rail station closures, cancellations and reduced services.
Aslef said that drivers on strike have not had a pay increase for three years. They have gained support from other trade unions, such as Unite, and Labour MPs Dawn Butler and Barry Gardiner during their action, which hit Avanti West Coast, CrossCountry, Greater Anglia, Great Western Railway, Hull Trains, LNER, London Overground, Southeastern and West Midlands Trains.
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This week, members of the RMT and TSSA unions will strike on Thursday (August 18) and Saturday (August 20), while industrial action will be taken on Friday (August 19) by London Underground and London bus drivers. Train operators have warned of disruption, with many announcing reduced timetables.
The services that do run are expected to be extremely busy. For the latest updates from National Rail, click here.
The following train operators will be impacted:
- Avanti West Coast
- c2c
- Caledonian Sleeper
- Chiltern Railways
- CrossCountry
- East Midlands Railway
- Elizabeth line
- Gatwick Express
- Grand Central
- Great Northern
- Great Western Railway
- Greater Anglia
- Heathrow Express
- Hull Trains
- LNER
- London Northwestern Railway
- London Overground
- Lumo
- Merseyrail
- Northern
- ScotRail
- South Western Railway
- Southeastern
- Southern
- Stansted Express
- Thameslink
- TransPennine Express
- Transport for Wales
- West Midlands Railway
Rail industry bosses and union group Aslef are expected to hold formal talks this week over Saturday's strike action. Steve Montgomery, chairman of the Rail Delivery Group, and Aslef general secretary Mick Whelan confirmed that the talks would go ahead following the 24-hour action.
Mr Montgomery described the planned formal talks as a “really good step forward”. He told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme: “It is important we get round the table and we start to have meaningful discussions about how we can look at reform so that we can then offer our staff a pay increase.
"It is really important we take this opportunity and try and hopefully prevent further strikes and get some result to this situation.” The union is also balloting drivers at Chiltern Railways, Northern Trains and TransPennine Express for strikes, with the results due later in August.
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