Train strike January 2018: Disruption to be even worse than feared as 1,500 trains set to be cancelled

Dick Murray5 January 2018

Disruption caused by three days of strikes next week across South Western Railways (SWR) will be worse than forecast, with 1,500 trains cancelled.

SWR today warned it will run “more than 70 per cent of services” and not the 75 per cent originally planned.

Walkouts by RMT train staff will take place on Monday, Wednesday and Friday in the long running dispute over the role of guards.

Further delays and cancellations are threatened on the non-strike days of Tuesday and Thursday due to train stock and staff being out of place.

Nearly all trains in and out of the station were delayed.
Nigel Howard

Strikes have also been ordered on Greater Anglia, Northern Rail and Merseyrail on the same dates with a 24-hour walkout on Southern Rail on Monday.

The RMT confirmed the strikes at SWR, which carries more than 300,000 passengers a day on 1,700 services including trains to and from Waterloo, would take place following the breakdown of tense last ditch negotiations.

Andy Mellors, SWR managing director, said: “We have repeatedly guaranteed that no one will lose their jobs and that we will roster a second person on board every train.”

He continued: “What we have been trying to talk to the RMT about is what happens if a guard is unavailable at short notice, perhaps due to illness or disruption, and how we might keep passengers moving rather than leave them stranded.”

In a letter to SWR members Mick Cash, the RMT leader, stated: “The strikes are on and I urge you and your colleagues to once again show your solidarity with one another and support the union.”

The union said SWR promises to “roster” a second person on every train fell far short of the “guarantee” for a second member as being demanded by the RMT.

SWR said it will operate longer trains next week but warned passengers they would be far busier than usual and to check before they travel.

Some lines will have no train service, others will have trains replaced by buses. Waterloo station, particularly in the evenings will be very busy.

In all the disputes the union is demanding trains which currently carry a guard continue to do so and are not replaced by driver-only operation (DOO) which the RMT says is “unsafe.”

This is robustly denied by rail industry chiefs who highlight the safe use of DOO across large parts of the UK.

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