Car use will surge as nearly two out of five young adults’ Christmas plans have been disrupted by rail strikes, a new survey suggests.
Some 39% of respondents to an RAC survey aged 18-24 said they have changed their festive travel itinerary due to industrial action on the railways, more than any other age category.
The figure for all ages was 21%.
It’s once again the private car that is coming to the rescue— Rod Dennis, RAC
More than half (51%) of young adults affected by the strikes are turning to private cars, with 28% planning to drive themselves and 23% getting a lift from someone else.
Just 15% said they will travel by other means such as by coach and 10% will rebook onto a train service on a non-strike day.
Dependency on car use when disrupted by train strikes is also prevalent among most other groups, ranging from 52% to 54% for all age categories from 25 to 64.
More than a quarter of affected respondents did not have an alternative plan when questioned this week.
Some 2,007 people were surveyed.
Just a fifth of train services will operate on Saturday as thousands of members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union at Network Rail and 14 train companies strike in a long-running row over jobs, pay and conditions.
This followed walkouts on Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday.
Services will also be disrupted due to an RMT overtime ban at train operators from Sunday until January 2.
RMT workers at Network Rail will also strike from 6pm on Christmas Eve until 6am on December 27.
Passengers are being urged to complete Christmas Eve journeys as early as lunchtime.
RAC spokesman Rod Dennis said: “With just over a week until Christmas Day, so many people’s plans have been thrown into disarray as a result of the industrial action affecting vast swathes of the railway.
“While some people do intend to rebook onto different trains, the proportion is relatively small and, as our research shows, it’s once again the private car that is coming to the rescue of so many people this Christmas.
“But it’s those with access to a car who are the lucky ones. Things are distinctly less rosy for people who don’t, with a large proportion of these currently without a plan for how they’ll make their Christmas getaways this year.
“Short of booking an urgent coach ticket or cancelling their plans altogether, we have to hope that friends or family members are in a position to help them out with a last-minute offer of a lift.
“There’s no question that the strikes are going to make this year’s Christmas getaway on the roads busier than normal this year with.
“Our advice is to plan ahead and avoid travelling at peak times of the day if possible.”
