Tube strike February 2017: Times, dates, and everything else you need to know about the Central line walkout

Disruption will hit the capital’s Tube network starting on Tuesday, February 21
Hatty Collier20 February 2017

Hundreds of thousands of Tube commuters face major travel disruption as train drivers stage a 24-hour strike on the Central line.

RMT union members are set to walk out for 24 hours on Tuesday evening in protest over the “forced” transfer of eight drivers to different depots.

Drivers from the Aslef union announced on Wednesday that they would also be taking action on the Central line in the same dispute at the same time as the RMT walkout.

The Central line will have no service east of Leytonstone and a reduced service running on the rest of the line all day on Wednesday.

The Waterloo & City line could also be disrupted or forced to close.

Commuters queue for buses during a previous walkout 
Jeremy Selwyn

When are the strikes happening?

Drivers from the Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) and Aslef unions are due to strike for 24 hours from 9pm on Tuesday, February 21.

TfL said if the strike goes ahead services would be severely disrupted on Wednesday withless impact on Tuesday evening.

It said it expected normal services to resume by Thursday morning.

Freezing weather: Passengers wait outside Ilford station during a 24-hour Tube strike
@TazKhan

Which lines and routes will be affected?

London Underground (LU) said there will be no Central Line service east of Leytonstone and a reduced service on the rest of the line.

Trains on the rest of the Central line will be less frequent and the service will start later than usual in the morning.

The Waterloo & City line - known as The Drain - between mainline Waterloo and Bank stations and which uses the same pool of drivers could also be disrupted or forced to close.

Other lines are not affected but will be much busier than usual as passengers seek alternative routes to get to and from work.

The two unions control virtually all the drivers meaning disruption could be far worse than during the last walkout when only RMT drivers were involved.

The Central line is the busiest on the network and used by more than 800,000 passengers a day.

Tube strike chaos

1/17

Which alternative routes and stations are expected to be busier than usual?

  • TfL rail services between Romford and Stratford, particularly Ilford station;

  • London Overground lines and stations between Liverpool Street and Chingford;

  • Victoria line and stations especially Walthamstow Central;

  • Jubilee line between London Bridge and Waterloo.

Passengers were also warned of queuing outside stations during peak times.

Why is the strike happening?

The dispute is over the “forced” transfer of eight drivers from their home depots at the eastern end of the line to others in central London, including Earl’s Court, meaning they have further to travel.

RMT leaders say it is being done without agreement – a claim robustly denied by London Underground (LU).

LU and the RMT met for talks on January 3 and January 13 for talks but no agreement was reached.

Aslef announced on Wednesday that it would also be taking action in the same dispute.

Mick Cash, RMT General Secretary, said: “RMT negotiators have made strenuous efforts through the ACAS machinery to resolve this dispute but the door has been slammed in our faces. To up the ante, LUL have now written to us confirming that they will be bulldozing through the displacements regardless.

“Let us be in no doubt, if LU are allowed to get away with this move on the Central Line they will start shunting drivers around the combine at the drop of a hat regardless of the consequences.

“Our members will be sent out from pillar to post to plug gaps that are solely down to staffing shortages. With massive budget cuts in the pipeline at LU this is a straw in the wind as to how the company expects to operate in the future.

“Staff across London Underground are angry and the company would be wise to recognise that. This latest phase of action is on and RMT remains available for serious talks.”

"Like any responsible transport authority we regularly examine how we can provide the best possible service to customers‎ and to achieve this sometimes we need to move staff from locations where they are under-utilised, to the places where they are really needed.

Steve Griffiths, London Underground’s Chief Operating Officer, said: "This threat of strike action is completely unnecessary.

"Like any responsible transport authority we regularly examine how we can provide the best possible service to customers‎ and to achieve this sometimes we need to move staff from locations where they are under-utilised, to the places where they are really needed.

“We have agreements with the trade unions that enable us to do this. We have identified eight drivers for whom there is not enough work on the Central line, so we have asked them to move to another line where they would make a real difference to the service our customers receive.

"We are committed to minimising the impact of this move on the eight drivers and we encourage the unions to continue engaging with us in finding a way to do this. The drivers will also have priority on any future vacancies in their original location should they wish to return. We call on the unions to honour this long-standing agreement ‎and join us for more talks to resolve this issue rather than threaten to cause needless disruption to our customers."‎

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