Commuters are facing rush-hour travel hell today as rail services on some of the busiest commuter routes in the country will be hit by fresh strikes in long-running pay dispute.
Members of Aslef at operators including those running services into London such as Southern, Southeastern and South Western Railway will walk out for the day.
Strikes will be held on Wednesday and Thursday at different operators, while drivers are also banning overtime until Saturday.Passengers have been urged to check before attempting to travel by train this week. The dispute is now the longest ever in the rail industry.
There is a glimmer of hope that negotiations will start in a bid to resolve the row after the Rail Delivery Group (RDG) invited Aslef to talks about exploring any common ground which could break the deadlock.
Commuters wait underneath an empty departure board at Victoria Station in London on the first day in a series of strike actions
A section of Victoria Station in London closed to three public on the first day in a series of strike actions
No formal talks between the operators and the union have been held for a year and for longer involving a transport minister.
Business groups have warned of the impact on the economy of the strikes, especially for hospitality firms.
Muniya Barua, deputy chief executive at BusinessLDN, said: 'Yet another round of industrial action across the rail network will cause disruption for businesses and commuters up and down the country.
'Amid weak economic growth, and as we head into a summer trading period which is crucial for retail, leisure and hospitality firms, we urge all parties to work together to resolve these long-running talks and keep the city moving. The impact of these walkouts will be felt even more acutely by many owing to a shorter working week.'
Emma McClarkin, Chief Executive of the British Beer and Pub Association, added: 'The Aslef strikes that will take effect nationwide from Monday to Thursday mean yet more disruption for consumers and businesses. Last year's trains strikes cost the beer and pub sector an estimated £143million in lost trade.
'Now, at a time when pubs are trying to manage the competing costs of doing business, these almost week long strikes will have a significant negative impact on pubs and surrounding businesses, placing a continued strain on the sector.'
Train drivers will strike on the following days:
Empty platforms at Paddington Station in London on the first day in a series of strike actions
A section of Victoria Station in London closed to the public
Aslef said its members have not had a pay rise for five years and has accused the Government of 'giving up' trying to resolve the dispute.
A spokesman for the RDG said: 'The rail industry is working hard to keep trains running but it is likely that services on some lines will be affected on the evening before and morning after each strike between May 7 and May 9 because many trains will not be in the right depots to start services the following day.
'We can only apologise to our customers for this wholly unnecessary strike action called by the Aslef leadership which will sadly disrupt journeys once again.
'It will also inflict further damage on an industry that is receiving up to an additional £54 million a week in taxpayer cash to keep services running, following the Covid downturn.'
A Department for Transport spokesperson said: 'The Transport Secretary and rail minister have already facilitated a pay offer that would take train drivers' average salaries up to £65,000 - almost twice the UK average salary.
'Aslef are the only union left striking after the Government oversaw deals with all the other unions.
'Instead of causing passengers disruption, they should put this offer to their members and work with industry to end this dispute.'
Meanwhile, engineers on the Croydon Tramlink went on strike on Sunday until 6am on Thursday in a separate pay dispute.
Tuesday
c2c
No trains on the entire c2c route on Tuesday.
Reduced service from Wednesday until Saturday.
Greater Anglia
Most routes will have no service on Tuesday, but there will be a reduced service on a small number of key routes into London for fewer hours of the day:
First trains of the day on most routes on Wednesday will start around 7am. The Stansted Express will be operating a reduced service of two or three trains per hour.
Govia Thameslink Railway: Great Northern, Thameslink, Southern and Gatwick Express
Very limited Thameslink shuttle service on Tuesday from 7am until 7pm as follows:
There will also be a very limited Southern shuttle service calling at Gatwick Airport and London Victoria only, between 5am and 11pm on Tuesday.
Services will start later than normal on Wednesday. An amended timetable between Wednesday and Friday with fewer services operating.
Southeastern
Very limited service on Tuesday, with most routes and stations closed. Only 29 out of 165 Southeastern stations will be open, and no replacement buses will run.
But there is expected to be a full service from Wednesday to Saturday inclusive.
South Western Railway
Extremely limited service on Tuesday on a limited number of lines. Trains will only run from 7am until 7pm and only between:
There will be no service on the Island Line on Tuesday. From Wednesday until Friday, a revised service will run across SWR - with short-notice cancellations possible.
Wednesday
Avanti West Coast
No service on Wednesday.
Reduced service on Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday mostly on the Manchester and Birmingham routes due to the overtime ban and Wednesday's strike.
Chiltern Railways
No service on Wednesday.
Limited service on Tuesday, Thursday and Friday as follows:
No service on Tuesday, Thursday and Friday as follows:
CrossCountry
No service on Wednesday.
Possible short-notice cancellations from Monday until Saturday.
East Midlands Railway
No service on Wednesday.
From Monday until Saturday, normal timetable is planned but short-notice cancellations are possible.
Great Western Railway
Extremely limited service on Wednesday between 7am and 7pm on these routes only:
From Monday until Saturday, normal level of service is due to operate throughout the day, but there may be some short-notice changes to services late at night.
Night Riviera Sleeper service is cancelled from Monday until Friday inclusive.
London Northwestern Railway
No service on Wednesday.
Planned reduced service between Monday and Saturday.
West Midlands Trains
No service on Wednesday.
Between Monday and Saturday, planned reduction of services.
Thursday
London North Eastern Railway (LNER)
On Thursday, reduced timetable between London and Edinburgh, London, and Leeds. No LNER services at Lincoln, Skipton, Bradford, Harrogate, Hull, Glasgow, Aberdeen or Inverness. LNER will not be stopping at Northallerton, Morpeth, Alnmouth, Reston or Dunbar.
On Wednesday, possible changes to services. No LNER service to or from Inverness and rail replacement coaches will be in operation.
On Friday, there will also be possible changes to services.
Northern
No Northern services on Thursday.
Between Monday and Saturday, most services will be running as planned but customers are advised to check before travelling because 'short notice cancellations are likely'.
TransPennine Express
No service on Thursday.
Services may also be altered or cancelled on the night before or morning after Thursday. Short-notice cancellations are possible between Monday and Saturday.
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