Ask Simon Calder anything as Tube strikes set to bring London Underground to a halt

The Independent’s travel correspondent Simon Calder is on hand to help you navigate next week’s TfL commuter chaos

Commuters will have to stay at home or use alternative transport (PA Archive)

London Underground workers are set to stage a series of strikes next week in a dispute over pay, sparking a major headache for commuters into the capital.

Members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT) voted overwhelmingly to take industrial action over a 5% pay offer.

On Sunday (7 January) services will stop early, with little or no service across the entire Tube network from Monday to Thursday. Service is expected to resume late on Friday morning.

London Underground passengers have been advised by Transport for London (TfL) to “only travel if their journey is essential”.

Different parts of the workforce will strike on different days to cause maximum disruption without employees having to lose out on four days’ pay.

But why are the strikes taking place? And is there a chance they will be called off before disruption begins on Sunday?

What are your rights for a refund if you’ve already purchased travelcards? And what alternative transport options will be available during industrial action?

I will be on hand from 2pm GMT on Friday 5 January to answer all your travel questions in an ‘Ask Me Anything’ event. I will be answering live in the comments section below.

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