Aslef’s Final Strike Day Disrupts Rail Services in South, East England
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Rail passengers on many routes in the south and east of England including key commuter lines into London can expect significant disruption on Monday as train drivers stage the last strike in three days of action.
Aslef union members began a 24-hour strike at eight operating companies on Monday: c2c, Gatwick Express, Greater Anglia, Great Northern, Southeastern, Southern, South Western Railway and Thameslink. The action is part of a long-running dispute over pay and conditions that began in 2022, The Guardian reported.
Great Northern, c2c and the Gatwick Express have confirmed that they will not be running any services across the day.
Southern will run only one shuttle service throughout the day, calling at Gatwick airport and London Victoria only, while Thameslink will be operate two shuttle services, one calling at London St Pancras, Luton Airport Parkway and Luton only, and one between London King’s Cross and Cambridge only.
Southeastern said it would be running a limited service, with only 29 of the 165 stations it serves open. Greater Anglia will also have much-reduced services, running only hourly trains between London Liverpool Street and Southend, Norwich and Stansted Airport.
South Western has said it will continue to operate an extremely limited timetable, running on a small number of lines to and from London Waterloo. All services would stop by 7pm and it warned passengers to travel only if absolutely necessary.
All companies have said the strikes could lead to some services on Tuesday being disrupted.
The strikes coincide with an overtime ban called by the union at 16 operators across England on Monday and Tuesday after similar action between Thursday and Saturday.
It is expected that ban will increase the likelihood of short-notice cancellations and disruption. Train drivers in Scotland and Wales are not involved in the dispute or the industrial action, but cross-border rail services could be disrupted.
The strikes on the remaining eight operating companies follow two days of action on other parts of the network on Friday and Saturday.
In a video posted on Aslef’s X account on Friday, the general secretary of the union, Mick Whelan, said: “As we’ve seen from the 17 pay deals we have done, and the recent resolution on London Underground shows that when people come to the table there is a resolution, there is a way forward and we are willing to find one.
“It’s now time for the government and employers to come back to the table, to work with us to resolve this long-running dispute.”
A spokesperson for the Rail Delivery Group, which represents train operators, said it was sorry the strikes called by Aslef’s leadership risked disrupting journeys.
“While we are doing all we can to keep trains running and we will work with our industry partners to keep as many trains running as possible, unfortunately there will be reduced services between Thursday 4 April to Tuesday 9 April,” it added. “Our advice is to check before you travel and follow the latest travel information.”
A Department for Transport spokesperson said: “Aslef is the only rail union continuing to strike, targeting passengers and preventing their own members from voting on the pay offer that remains on the table.”
