Train strikes - live: Drivers at nine rail companies announce new walkout in August
Large-scale walk outs cause cancellations and delays on Wednesday and Saturday
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Train drivers at nine rail companies have announced a new strike in August as a dispute causing travel chaos across the country deepens.
Aslef announced its members will walk out on Saturday, 13 August, saying the firms failed to make a pay offer to help members keep pace with increases in the cost of living.
The announcement was made as strikes by members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport union and Transport Salaried Staffs Association crippled services on Wednesday, with only around one in five trains running and some areas having none at all.
All passengers have been warned to complete any essential journeys by rail before 6.30pm, after which very few trains will be in operation.
Disputes in the bitter row over jobs, pay, pensions and conditions are worsening, with more strikes in the coming days, and a wave of industrial action planned next month on the UK’s railways and London Underground.
Only around one in five trains have been running today, on around half of the network, with some areas having no trains all day.
Disruption is expected to carry on into Thursday morning.
Rail companies warn of late-starting services on Thursday
Train operators are reiterating warnings that their services will start later than usual on Thursday, with disruption expected, due to the knock-on effect of today’s strike.
“Services will start later on Thursday 28 July,” warned Thameslink on Twitter, shortly after 5.30pm. “We’re running an amended service tomorrow with no services before 07.00. Services from some stations will be later than this.”
Southern, Great Northern and Gatwick Express also tweeted: “We’re running an amended service tomorrow with no services before 07.00. Services from some stations will be later than this.”
Network Rail Scotland has also warned “ services start later in some areas on Thursday,” while South Western Railway published a statement saying no trains will operate before 07.30, with services likely to be busier than usual.
Labour frontbencher sacked after defying Starmer order to stay away from rail strike picket line
Labour frontbencher Sam Tarry has been sacked as shadow transport minister after defying Keir Starmer’s order to stay away from rail strike picket lines.
The Ilford South MP showed his support for the RMT union’s walkout over pay and redundancies by joining strikers at London’s Euston station just a day after the Labour leader warned his frontbench not to do so.
A Labour Party spokesperson said: “The Labour Party will always stand up for working people fighting for better pay, terms and conditions at work.
“This isn’t about appearing on a picket line. Members of the frontbench sign up to collective responsibility. That includes media appearances being approved and speaking to agreed frontbench positions.
“As a government-in-waiting, any breach of collective responsibility is taken extremely seriously and for these reasons Sam Tarry has been removed from the frontbench.” Read the full story from our political editor Andrew Woodcock here:
Labour MP sacked by Starmer after defying order not to join rail strike picket line
Labour frontbencher Sam Tarry has been sacked as shadow transport minister after defying Keir Starmer’s order to stay away from rail strike picket lines.
Train drivers to strike next month
Train drivers at nine rail companies are to stage a one-day strike next month, Aslef has announced.
The union said its members will walk out on Saturday, 13 August, saying the firms had failed to make a pay offer to help them keep pace with increases in the cost of living.
Drivers are already set to strike this Saturday at seven companies and on Wednesday Aslef members at two more train operators voted overwhelmingly for industrial action.
Read more here:
Train drivers to strike next month as industrial action causes travel chaos
Aslef announced its members will walk out on Saturday August 13.
Train companies are reminding customers of their last train times of the day on various routes, many of them departing before 6pm.
Great Northern Rail posted a timetable showing final departures from London to Cambridge, Ely, Luton and more; while GWR alerted its customers to the final Paddington to Bristol Temple Meads train at 16.33 and the Paddington to Oxford service at 17.34.
Gatwick Express’ last Brighton-bound train today is at 18.22, while its last London Victoria service from the airport is at 18.10.
Individual rail operators’ Twitter feeds are the best source of up to the moment information on strike train times.
Travellers warned to complete journeys by 6.30pm
Ahead of rush-hour, Brits have been warned to complete journeys befopre 6.30pm this evening.
Network Rail has issued a reminder to passengers that there is a “very limited service” running today.
The transport body tweeted: “You will need to complete your journey by 18.30 so please check your last train”.
Passengers can check trains at: networkrail.co.uk/industrial-action
Unions condemn Shapps for ‘attack on fundamental right to strike'
Unions have reacted with anger to proposals by the Transport Secretary to crack down on strikes amid the long-running rail dispute.
Grant Shapps set out a series of plans in a newspaper interview, including stopping co-ordinated industrial action, limiting picketing and having a cooling-off period after strikes.
He told the Daily Telegraph: “I’m looking at banning strikes by different unions in the same workplace within a set period. We should also place an absolute limit of six pickets at points of critical national infrastructure, irrespective of the number of unions involved, and outlaw intimidatory language.
“Ballot papers should also set out clearly the specific reason for industrial action and the form of action to be taken. In addition, before strike dates are announced, employers should have the right to respond to the issue cited on the ballot paper.”
Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: “If Grant Shapps had his way we would all still be in the workhouse.
“His intervention is just the latest in a growing list of political attacks on trade unions and the most fundamental rights held by working people.
“Whilst this outbreak is clearly framed by a fashion parade within the Conservative Party, it is also deeply serious and shows just how out of touch our political class are.”
Last train to London has left Edinburgh
With Network Rail operating very constrained hours with non-union signallers and management, those trains that are running on an RMT strike day are limited to 7.30am-6.30pm.
As a result, some “last trains” are extremely early.
The final direct LNER service from Edinburgh Waverley to London King's Cross departed at 12.30pm. Passengers who missed it could travel on the 1.05pm with a change of train at York. But now that has left, the next southbound service at 3.30pm runs only as far Doncaster – where passengers must wait for 13 hours before the first morning train to London.
The last train from anywhere iin Scotland to London departed Lockerbie at 1.20pm – the final stop north of the border for the Avanti West Coast train from Glasgow to Euston, due in at 5.32pm.
Actor Rob Delaney joins Mick Lynch on picket line
Catastrophe star Rob Delaney has posted a photo of himself at an RMT picket line with the union’s general secretary Mick Lynch.
”2 nice men wondering if you’d care to join them at the picket,” wrote Delaney.
Labour MP Dawn Butler, shadow transport minister Sam Tarry and SNP MP for the Glasgow South West, Chris Stephens, have also posted on social media about joining transport workers at the picket line.
Northwest locals stranded as Arriva Bus strike coincides with rail walkout
As nationwide rail strikes take out some 80 per cent of UK train services, some residents in the northwest are also struggling to travel by bus.
Staff from bus operator Arriva North West, which serves Merseyside, Manchester and surrounds, are entering a seventh day of consecutive strike action.
A statement on the company’s website reads: “We are disappointed for all our customers to confirm that the strike will be continuing into next week, with no date yet for services being resumed.
“We remain committed to getting our drivers back to work and buses back on the road as soon as possible. We once again ask the union to call off the action and let our people vote on the latest 8.5 per cent pay offer.”
Today Mayor of Liverpool Joanne Anderson weighed in on the row, saying Arriva “can afford a fair rate of pay”.
In an open letter to the company, she wrote: “Currently, the majority of our residents are facing a cost-of-living crisis that means without decent pay, they will fall sharply into in-work poverty. Your workforce is also facing this tsunami of rising costs and you must take some responsibility for their well-being.”
She continued: “We know that Arriva can afford a fair rate of pay. Arriva’s parent company DB Group saw revenue rise by 18.4% in 2021 to 47.5 billion Euros. Arriva is making it very clear that they are choosing to prioritise profits over supporting their hard-working workforce that connect our communities.”
Jeremy Corbyn joins rail workers at Euston picket line
Former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has joined striking rail workers at Euston station, along with John McDonnell, MP for Hayes and Harlington, and the RMT union’s assistant general secretary Eddie Dempsey.
“Great to join Eddie Dempsey, @johnmcdonnellMP and members of @IslingtonNorth on the @RMTunion picket line at Euston this morning to show my support for striking rail workers! #SupportRailWorkers,” he wrote on Twitter.
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