Passengers are being advised to avoid traveling to and from Euston on Friday and Saturday due to a planned rail strike that is expected to disrupt journeys. This comes after an earlier RMT union walkout affecting TfL Tube drivers was called off at the last minute, but another strike targeting West Midlands Railway services and London Northwestern Railway this weekend remains in effect.
When is the railway strike happening?
The strike will take place on Friday, June 22 and Saturday, June 23. Passengers should expect a significantly reduced timetable on both days. National Rail has warned that only a small number of trains will be running, and people are encouraged to travel only if absolutely necessary. No trains will operate after 7pm on Friday or before 7am on Saturday.
London Northwestern Railway schedule this weekend
On Friday and Saturday, there will be no trains between London Euston and Crewe, Bedford Bletchley, St Albans Abbey and Watford Junction, and between Stafford and Crewe via Stoke-on-Trent.
One train per hour will run between London Euston via Northampton and Birmingham New Street, Northampton and Euston, and Liverpool Lime Street and Birmingham New Street.
West Midlands Railway
Trains on the West Midlands Railway network will also be limited on Friday and Saturday. One train per hour will run between Birmingham New Street, Wolverhampton, Walsall, and Rugeley Trent Valley via Birmingham International Airport. Two trains per hour will run between Birmingham, Lichfield Trent Valley, and Redditch-Bromsgrove.
However, no trains will operate on any other West Midlands routes, including the Shrewsbury and Hereford lines, and between Nuneaton and Leamington Spa.
Why is the rail strike going ahead?
The dispute between the TSSA union and West Midlands Trains, the parent company of London Northwestern Railway, centres around rest day working payments. The union claims its members should receive the same treatment as other unions regarding rest day pay. After a period of stalemate, TSSA members who work as crew managers, control staff, and roster clerks voted to go on strike.
Maryam Eslamdoust, TSSA’s general secretary, stated: “As things stand, these strikes will go ahead as planned because the company is simply refusing to give our members parity with those in other unions. That is an intolerable situation, especially given the fact these are modest demands.”
She added that it is now up to the company to stop the walkouts and that the union remains open to further negotiations.
Ian McConnell, managing director of London Northwestern Railway, said: “We encourage TSSA to continue talks with us to reach a resolution to this dispute. This strike action will cause disruption to our customers with a significantly reduced timetable in operation on both dates. We are doing all we can to minimise the impact as far as possible and apologise to customers for the inconvenience. However, where services are running, we advise customers to only travel if necessary and to allow more time for their journey.”
