Important information about the December train strikes

Aslef, the union for train drivers, has initiated another phase of protests in their ongoing and contentious conflict with 14 train operators in England regarding compensation and work schedules.

The general secretary, Mick Whelan, stated that the reason for the strike is not to cause inconvenience to passengers, but to convey their disappointment with the government’s stubbornness and the lack of honesty from the private companies that hire us.

Train operators are being urged by drivers to grant a salary increase without any conditions, and then engage in discussions at a regional level to update their methods of work. This will come at an extra cost for the employers. Aslef claims that some drivers have not received a raise in pay for a period of five years.

The RDG, which represents train operators, states that any raise in pay is dependent on significant changes being made.

The Department for Transport (DfT) will approve any agreement. Taxpayers are covering the costs as ticket sales have decreased by 20% compared to pre-Covid times, resulting in a subsidy of £16,300 per minute for the railway, which is £4,000 more than before the pandemic.

The union has not engaged in discussions with the RDG since April and has had no communication with ministers since January.

A representative from the Department for Transport expressed disappointment that Aslef is choosing to disrupt the public and hospitality industries during the holiday season. Rather than going on strike, Aslef should follow the example of other rail unions and allow their members to vote on the proposed pay agreement.

A representative from the Rail Delivery Group stated that the strike organized by the Aslef leadership is unnecessary and will unfortunately cause disruption for customers and businesses during the important holiday season.

Aslef is currently engaged in a disagreement with the railway companies that have been contracted by the government to offer rail services. The companies include:

Intercity operators:

London commuter operators:

Operators with a focus on the Midlands and northern regions of England.

The nine-day overtime restriction has resulted in numerous cancellations from December 1st to December 9th.

Union workers are participating in a strike between December 2nd and 8th. Every day, except for Monday, December 4th, a specific region of the country is being focused on to create the most chaos. Numerous train companies are choosing to cancel all of their services on the designated strike days.

According to Aslef, in the past, they have called for a strike on the same day. However, this time they have decided to spread out the strike action that their members voted for and also implement a ban on overtime throughout the week. This will have bigger consequences for the rail industry.

The effect on individual train companies varies based on their reliance on overtime and the level of employee absences, which tend to be greater during winter compared to summer.

Certain operators have implemented major proactive cancellations in response to the overtime ban, in order to minimize disruptions on the day of travel. Passengers are advised that trains may be altered or cancelled at short notice.

Several trains departing early on the first day were called off. These consisted of South Western Railway trains from London Waterloo to Southampton, Great Western Railway trains from London Paddington to Weston-super-Mare via Bristol and Carmarthen via Cardiff and Swansea, and TransPennine Express trains from Manchester and Newcastle to Edinburgh. Additionally, several Manchester-Leeds-Hull services were also affected.

The following rail companies have announced preemptive cancellations:

Aslef train drivers are going on strike on specific days for specific train operators.

Both ScotRail and Transport for Wales are not part of the conflict.

According to past occurrences, these are the probable consequences if drivers go on strike. Please confirm closer to the date of travel for accuracy.

Furthermore, aside from the disruptions during strike days, trains on consecutive days may also experience delays. During these days, trains are expected to have a high volume of passengers as people adjust their travel plans to avoid the effects of the strike.

On Sunday, December 3rd, traveling north-south was difficult due to chaos caused by the Aslef strike. The majority of services on the West Coast main line, which links London Euston to the West Midlands, northwest England, North Wales, and southern Scotland, were suspended.

Many people would usually take LNER on the East Coast main line as an alternative route. However, due to scheduled Network Rail engineering work, the line south of St Neots in Cambridgeshire was completely closed. To accommodate this, rail replacement buses were arranged between St Neots and Bedford. Normally, passengers would then be able to catch a frequent Thameslink train to London. However, these trains were not running due to the Aslef strike.

There will be no disruptions on the following dates for ScotRail, Transport for Wales, and these other operators.

During days when rail companies that run similar services are on strike, trains may experience higher levels of congestion.

When GWR and CrossCountry are on strike, the transportation services between Newport, Cardiff, and Swansea operated by Transport for Wales may experience higher than normal levels of activity.

Certain stations may have restrictions on boarding or exiting trains to prevent overcrowding.

The Elizabeth Line and the Tube provide constant access to London Heathrow. Despite the Heathrow Express strike on December 7th, there will still be a limited service from 7am to 7pm.

Passengers using London Gatwick are impacted twice: once on Sunday 3 December, when Thameslink train drivers will walk out, and Wednesday 6 December when it’s the turn of Aslef members working for Gatwick Express and Southern. But for main line passengers between London, Gatwick and Brighton, there will still be a fair number of trains running. They may be very crowded, especially in the mornings. No Gatwick Express trains will run at all.

On Tuesday, December 5th, London Stansted will have a limited service every hour due to an overtime ban. The remaining days will also experience “service alterations.”

The railway is a way to reach Luton airport from London every day, even during strikes. On Saturday, December 2nd, when East Midlands Railway (EMR) was on strike, Thameslink was still in operation. However, the next day, Thameslink was not running but EMR was.

On Saturday, December 2nd, the only way to reach Birmingham airport by train was through Transport for Wales departing from Birmingham New Street station.

On Sunday, December 3rd, Manchester airport could only be reached by rail through Transport for Wales from Manchester Piccadilly, Chester, and North Wales.

On strike days, connecting journeys may be challenging, but trains will still operate as usual between London St Pancras International and Paris, Brussels, and Amsterdam.

Mick Whelan, the leader of Aslef, stated to The Independent: “We will continue to fight until a resolution is reached.” He believes that this is a political disagreement that may only be settled with a change in government.

The majority of members from the main rail union, RMT, have agreed to accept a 5% pay increase without any conditions and continue with discussions at the local level, with the guarantee of no additional strikes for six months.

As usual, the long-distance bus companies National Express, Megabus, and FlixBus will continue to operate. However, there is limited availability of seats and prices have increased.

Flights within the UK from London, Bristol, Exeter, and Southampton to Newcastle, Edinburgh, and Glasgow may experience a price hike during the scheduled strike days.

Source: independent.co.uk