What are the options for travelling to London on a day of train strikes?

Simon Calder answers your questions on alternative transport to London, claiming compensation and Flybe’s collapse

More train strikes are taking place this week to create headaches for commuters (Simon Calder)

Q I am at my wit’s end. I'm really keen to plan some visits to family, and trips to London, to help me cheer me up after what feels like an incredibly long January. But with the seemingly endless rail strikes, I'm finding it impossible to plan. Do you have any advice or insights, or do I just have to keep guessing?

Carol H

A As you know, the next round of national rail strikes gets under way on Wednesday. Train drivers belonging to the Aslef union, as well as the few who belong to the RMT union, will walk out from 15 train operators on 1 and 3 February. There will be some trains on three strike-hit operators: LNER, Great Western and Greater Anglia. But the remaining dozen, including Avanti West Coast, East Midlands Trains and CrossCountry, will shut down. ScotRail, Transport for Wales and a few other operators will be unaffected as they are not in dispute. But for the majority of travellers, journeys will not be possible.