Important information about the train strikes in February and March: What you need to know about potential disruptions.

The disagreement between Aslef, the union for train drivers, and 14 train companies in England has been ongoing for three consecutive years.

The union has launched its initial strikes for 2024 as there is still no resolution in the ongoing and contentious dispute regarding pay and working conditions.

Aslef train operators will be halting operations in different regions throughout the week from Tuesday 30 January to Monday 5 February. Numerous trains will be cancelled daily.

The impact is worsened by a 9-day restriction on additional work hours from January 29th to February 6th.

Mick Whelan, the general secretary of Aslef, has stated that certain members have not received a salary increase in five years. Additionally, government officials have declined to communicate with the union for a year.

The individual stated to The Independent that any form of work stoppage is highly detrimental. However, due to being on strike for 18 months and not receiving any communication from the government or train operating companies for a year, they feel compelled to bring attention to their concerns.

Huw Merriman, the minister in charge of rail, stated to The Independent that strikes hinder the progress of the railway. He also mentioned that a fair and sensible proposal has been presented to Aslef and it is up to them to present it to their members.

These train operators make an average of £60,000 for working a 35-hour, four-day week. The new pay agreement would increase their salaries to £65,000.

“We are hopeful that they will seize the chance to do so. This will allow us to discuss the benefits of rail.”

The 14 train companies have come to a temporary understanding with the RMT union, which has halted strikes while discussions continue at a regional level. However, the RMT has declared two 48-hour strikes in February and March for the London Overground.

Here are the main inquiries and responses.

Aslef is currently in conflict with the train companies that have been hired by the government to offer railway services. The companies are:

Intercity operators:

Operators of commuter services in southeastern England.

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

ScotRail, Transport for Wales, Transport for London (specifically the Elizabeth Line), Merseyrail, and independent operators like Grand Central, Hull Trains, and Lumo will not be affected by the strike. However, their services may experience high levels of congestion on routes that overlap with those of the striking companies.

Starting on Monday 29 January, there will be a ban on overtime.

On Tuesday, January 30th, the train companies affected are South Western Railway, Southeastern, and GTR, which includes Southern, Gatwick Express, Great Northern, and Thameslink.

On Wednesday, January 31st, there will be services running on Northern and TransPennine Express.

There will be no strike on Thursday, February 1st, but the overtime ban will still be in effect.

On Friday, February 2nd, trains operated by Greater Anglia, C2C, and LNER will be running.

On Saturday, February 3rd, West Midlands Trains, Avanti West Coast, and East Midlands Railway will be operating.

There will be no strike on Sunday, February 4th, but the overtime ban will remain in effect.

On Monday, February 5th, the train services operating on the Great Western, CrossCountry, and Chiltern lines will be in service.

On Tuesday, February 6th, there will be no strike, but the ban on overtime will continue for one more day.

These forecasts are derived from recent statements made by railway companies and The Independent’s analysis of past strikes. It is recommended to verify them before embarking on travel.

On January 30th, the Great Northern shuttle service will only stop at London Kings Cross and Cambridge. The service may also be under the Thameslink brand and will have limited hours of operation.

On January 30th, Thameslink will have a shuttle service that stops at St Pancras, Luton Airport Parkway, and Luton stations. The company warns that the trains will be very crowded and queueing systems will be implemented.

Thameslink states that you may not be able to board the service you have selected. If you intend to travel on one of the final trains of the day, please keep in mind that you may not be able to board a service at all, depending on the length of the line. Additionally, no other transportation options will be offered after the last train leaves. It is recommended to plan ahead and allow ample time to reach your desired destination.

On January 30th, Southern will only be offering a nonstop shuttle between London Victoria and Gatwick airport from 6am to 11:30pm. There will be no other train services available during this time.

On January 30th, the Gatwick Express, which is a shuttle service for the Southern airport, will be in operation.

On January 30th, there will be no train services available on the Southeastern line.

On January 30th, South Western Railway provided a relatively comprehensive service in comparison to other train companies.

On January 31st, there will be no train services. The operator predicts high demand on two main routes on February 3rd due to a strike by East Midlands Railway: Leeds-Sheffield-Nottingham and Sheffield-Manchester.

There will be changes to TransPennine Express services on the evening of Tuesday, January 30 and the early morning of Thursday, February 1. The company has announced that there will be no trains during this time.

On February 2nd, there will be no trains running. The company has issued a warning that the Upminster car park is expected to reach full capacity and close early in the day. Upminster is located at the eastern end of the District Line on the London Underground, which will still be operating as usual.

On February 2nd, Greater Anglia will have a restricted schedule connecting London Liverpool Street to Norwich, Ipswich, and Colchester, as well as Southend Victoria, Cambridge, and Stansted airport.

On February 2nd, LNER will have consistent train services on main routes connecting London King’s Cross to Doncaster, York, Newcastle, and Edinburgh. The first trains will leave at approximately 8am and most trips will be completed by 7pm. There will be a limited direct service to Leeds, but passengers can connect from Doncaster.

On February 3rd, Avanti West Coast will not have any trains running. The operator has stated that train services on the days before and after the strike will also experience disruptions.

On February 3rd, East Midlands Railway announced that there will be no trains running. The railway company cautions that there will not be any bus services available for replacement. Other train companies may also have a reduced service due to an overtime restriction.

On February 3, West Midlands Railway announced that there will be no trains running and advised that services on Sunday, February 4 will experience significant delays and cancellations.

The train operator for Chiltern has announced that there will be no train services on February 5th or the previous day, February 4th, due to an ongoing strike. This is because the operator relies on drivers working overtime on Sundays to run any trains. However, due to an overtime ban, there will be no services running.

There will be no train service on February 5th for CrossCountry.

On February 5th, Great Western Railway will operate a reduced service between London Paddington and Oxford, Bath, and Bristol. There will also be a connection from Bristol to Cardiff. Limited service will be available on branch lines in Devon and Cornwall. The Night Riviera sleeper service from London to Penzance will be suspended for multiple nights.

Aside from the disturbance caused by strikes, train services on days before or after the strike may also be impacted. These days are expected to have high passenger volumes as people adjust their travel plans to avoid the industrial action.

The recent law permits the transportation secretary to establish the lowest required level of service (MSLs) on days of strikes, which should be equivalent to 40% of the regular service. The government states that the 2023 Strikes (Minimum Service Levels) Act intends to guarantee that the public can still utilize essential services during times of strike.

The train company is not attempting to enforce the new law onto the train drivers’ union. LNER mentioned the possibility of doing so and initiated discussions, during which Aslef announced a separate five-day strike solely for LNER. Afterward, the train company stated that it would not make drivers work and the strike was cancelled.

According to the BBC, the prime minister expressed disappointment that train operators have not enforced minimum service standards. A spokesperson for Downing Street stated, “We and the public anticipate that they will adhere to these standards.”

“We have consistently emphasized that train operators have access to this legislation for use.”

The Transport Select Committee has previously expressed concerns about possible unforeseen outcomes of the law. The chairperson of the Conservative Party, Iain Stewart, stated that there is a possibility for MSLs to negatively impact the relationship between workers and employers, potentially leading to a decrease in the reliability of services.

The regulations for minimum service levels do not extend to union restrictions on working on non-contracted days off.

Yes. In terms of sheer number of passengers hit, Tuesday 30 January is the most disruptive. It is aimed at commuters in southeast England, the majority of whom use the affected train operators. Normally Southern, Thameslink, Great Northern, South Western Railway and Southeastern carry around 40 per cent of all passengers.

On February 2 and 3, Friday and Saturday, intercity travelers will experience the most negative impact. The primary operators on the East Coast, West Coast, and Midland main lines will be affected.

Sunday 4 February is also likely to be severely disrupted mainly because of the ban on rest-day working. Chiltern Railway, which would normally run trains between London and Birmingham, says no services will run at all due to the overtime ban.

Scheduled maintenance will cause increased disruption on the West Coast main line between Birmingham and Wolverhampton, as well as on the East Coast main line between London King’s Cross and Stevenage.

The prohibition of overtime will result in numerous cancellations. According to Aslef, train companies do not have a sufficient number of drivers to fulfill their commitment to passengers and businesses without requiring them to work on their scheduled days off.

Many train operators still do not include Sunday as part of the working week, so the ban on rest-day working will cause significant disruptions on 4 February.

According to GWR, there will be considerable service disruptions and customers are advised to travel on different days. There will be no train service available for long-distance routes between London Paddington and Bristol, South Wales, and Exeter/Plymouth/Penzance.

Multiple railway companies have declared proactive cancellations in response to the previous ban on overtime, as outlined below:

There is a significant decrease in train service on weekends and many trains are also reduced on weekdays.

“There will be a significant decrease in service on the majority of Chiltern routes, and some branch lines will have no trains running. All routes will have an earlier than usual service end time.” There will be no trains running on Sunday, February 4th.

Gatwick Express service will not be running during the overtime ban. Instead, Southern trains will connect London Victoria and Gatwick airport during the industrial action.

The London Northwestern Railway and West Midlands Railway will have their branch lines shut down on the majority of days. These lines include the ones connecting Bletchley and Bedford, Watford Junction and St Albans Abbey, and Leamington Spa and Nuneaton.

The schedule for Southern trains has been changed to include fewer services. Some trains may begin and end at different times than usual.

Thameslink cautions: “There will be a modified schedule with reduced frequency.”

Certain stations may have restrictions on boarding or disembarking from trains in order to prevent overcrowding.

The Heathrow Express, Elizabeth Line, and Tube will provide continual access to London Heathrow.

On Tuesday, January 30th, passengers traveling through London Gatwick will experience major disruptions due to strikes. There will be no Gatwick Express or Thameslink trains operating, but a Southern shuttle service will be available for those traveling between London and Gatwick, with a direct route from Victoria to the airport. However, on February 5th, the GWR link from Gatwick to Redhill, Guildford, and Reading will not be running.

On Tuesday, February 2nd, London Stansted will only have a limited service from the capital, and there will be changes to the schedule for the rest of the days during the overtime ban. The route to Norwich will not be available on February 2nd, but CrossCountry trains to Cambridge (and beyond to Birmingham) will continue to operate. However, on February 5th, there will be no CrossCountry trains running to Stansted airport or any other destinations.

Luton Airport will still be reachable by train, specifically from London, on any day. This includes the day of the Thameslink strike, January 30th, where there will be a limited service from London St Pancras to Luton Airport Parkway. The East Midlands Railway link will also be in operation. On February 3rd, when no East Midlands Railway trains are expected to run, Thameslink will be running as usual.

On Friday, February 2nd, there will be trains departing from Southend airport hourly, but with limited operating hours.

On Tuesday, January 30, South Western Railway will not be providing service to Southampton airport. Similarly, on Monday, February 5, CrossCountry will also not be serving the airport.

On Wednesday, January 31st, Manchester airport will experience a significant decrease in train service. Due to a strike by Northern and TransPennine Express drivers, there will only be an hourly connection on Transport for Wales between central Manchester, Chester, and North Wales.

On Saturday, February 3rd, Birmingham airport will probably not be reachable by train, except for Transport for Wales from Birmingham New Street.

There will be no changes to train operations between London St Pancras International and Paris, Brussels, and Amsterdam. However, making connections on days when there is a strike may be challenging, especially on Tuesday, January 30 when Thameslink and Southeastern services are affected, and on Saturday, February 3 when there may be no East Midlands Railway services available.

During an interview with The Independent, Aslef’s leader Mick Whelan expressed concern over the lack of pay raises in the past five years. He questioned whether action should be taken.

The only solution to our problem is a fair agreement.

He predicts that without a compromise, the situation will become more chaotic and difficult.

A representative from Rail Delivery Group, which represents train companies, stated that the strikes will have no winners and will unfortunately disrupt our customers. While we are hopeful for a positive future for rail, currently taxpayers are having to provide an additional £54m per week to maintain services after the Covid pandemic.

The leaders of Aslef must acknowledge the financial difficulties that the rail industry is currently facing. They have presented drivers with a proposal that would increase their base salary to nearly £65,000 for a four-day work week, not including overtime. This amount is considerably higher than the national average and far exceeds the wages of many of our customers who do not have the luxury of working from home.

The government is urging the Aslef leadership to collaborate with them in finding a solution to the dispute, rather than resorting to further harmful industrial action. They are seeking a fair agreement that will benefit their employees and improve the reliability of services.

A representative from the Department for Transport expressed disappointment in Aslef’s actions of targeting commuters, students, and individuals with vital medical appointments who rely on train travel.

“Aslef is now the only rail union that is continuing to strike while refusing to put a fair and reasonable offer to its members. The offer that remains on the table and would bring the average train driver’s salary up to £65,000.

As a leader, it is important for Aslef to allow their members to make their own choices and determine their own future, rather than making decisions on their behalf.

Labour’s shadow transport secretary, Louise Haigh, stated that it is unacceptable that the transport secretary has not made efforts to meet with the unions and address the issue since the previous Christmas.

“Labour will take an unashamedly different approach to the Tories, and will work with both sides to reach a deal in the interests of passengers and workers. If the transport secretary took this sensible approach then perhaps we wouldn’t still be having strikes on our railways.”

The former shadow minister of rail, Stephen Morgan MP, has stated that the Labour party plans to return the railways to public ownership as contracts come to an end. This will ensure that services prioritize the needs of the passengers.

Over 300 members of the RMT union will participate in two 48-hour strikes on the London Overground, occurring on Mondays and Tuesdays two weeks apart: February 19-20, 2024 and March 4-5, 2024. This action includes security, station, revenue, and control staff.

The RMT reported that Arriva Rail London, the company responsible for London Overground, has proposed a pay offer that is lower than the current inflation rate.

The general secretary of the RMT, Mick Lynch, stated that if the conflict cannot be settled, the RMT is fully ready to engage in ongoing industrial action in order to secure a fair salary increase for London Overground employees.

The Independent has reached out to the Department for Transport and Arriva Rail London for a response.

Source: independent.co.uk