Train strikes: Passengers warned of significant disruption

Passengers person been warned to expect important disruption from the latest bid strikes connected Friday.

Members of the Aslef bid drivers' national are walking retired astatine 16 companies, with immoderate moving nary services astatine all.

These see TransPennine Express, Northern, Avanti, East Midlands Railway, Thameslink and Southern.

Friday's strike, which Aslef insists was not scheduled to people Eurovision events, is the archetypal of 4 abstracted days of walkouts by 2 unions.

Aslef is striking connected Friday, Wednesday 31 May, and Saturday 3 June - the time of the FA Cup final.

Separately, the RMT national is striking connected Saturday 13 May - the time of the Eurovision last successful Liverpool.

Both unions person been accused by Transport Secretary Mark Harper of targeting the contest.

Train companies said the enactment "is apt to effect successful small oregon nary services crossed ample areas of the network", with services besides disrupted connected the days instantly aft the onslaught days.

Passengers should program up and cheque services earlier travel, it said.

Aslef wide caput Mick Whelan said the docket of the onslaught enactment was based connected erstwhile the national had rejected the latest connection from bid operators, having to springiness 14 days' notice, and astir unit displacement patterns, and that Eurovision "wasn't a consideration".

"We hadn't looked astatine immoderate event," helium told the BBC, adding that if the national was going to people the contest, it would person taken enactment connected the time of the last instead, connected Saturday.

There will, however, beryllium Aslef overtime bans then.

Mr Whelan added: "We don't privation to wounded anybody, but determination is nary bully time for a strike. If you prime immoderate 1 time successful immoderate fixed week you'll deed immoderate event."

However, the Department for Transport said: "It's hard to judge Aslef would beryllium unaware of the immense interaction calling strikes the time before, and enactment abbreviated of onslaught the time of, the Eurovision last would person connected the event."

Harry Cunningham, 23, who lives successful London, had been readying to get the bid connected Friday to Liverpool and enactment the nighttime for the Eurovision Village expansive last connected Saturday.

When the strikes were announced, helium and his person looked into different transport options but immoderate alternate would person been 3 times longer than the train.

He said it was "crushing" and "heart breaking" that they wouldn't beryllium capable to go.

"It's a immense disappointment, and a existent let-down, and a monolithic missed opportunity. This is thing we've been readying and prepping for since September, possibly adjacent earlier then."

There person already been six onslaught days successful Aslef's long-running wage dispute.

Mr Whelan said a solution appeared adjacent further away, and didn't regularisation retired the quality lasting years.

He said the escalation he warned of successful January had not yet happened, and members were inactive pushing for "harder and faster" action.

The union's eight-person enforcement committee makes decisions, but Mr Whelan said the tools disposable included much oregon longer-lasting walkouts, a full prohibition connected overtime, oregon both.

The manufacture and the authorities accidental the railway's finances are unsustainable, truthful ways of moving person to alteration and efficiencies beryllium made, successful instrumentality for wages going up.

Unions constituent retired the wage rises connected the array are mode beneath inflation, and reason their members' jobs and moving conditions are being attacked.

Last period Aslef rejected the latest proposals from the radical representing bid companies.

Mr Whelan says discussions successful talks had led him to expect the 2nd year's wage summation to stay negotiable, depending connected what changes were agreed. But erstwhile the connection arrived, the fig of 4% was attached.

There person been nary further talks since the rejection.

Separately, RMT members who enactment arsenic attraction workers and signallers astatine Network Rail voted to judge a woody successful March, ending that dispute.

But the parallel quality implicit pay, jobs and moving conditions with 14 bid companies goes on.

The RMT's committee has rejected the bid companies' latest offer, including a 5% wage emergence 1 twelvemonth and 4% the next.

Mick Lynch, its wide secretary, said: "Throughout this quality - which has gone connected for implicit a twelvemonth - the authorities has tied the hands of the railway companies and prevented them offering a just deal.

"We are striking truthful that the employers and authorities tin spot the immense choler amongst obstruction workers is precise existent and they request to recognise that fact, look world and marque improved proposals".

The Rail Delivery Group, which represents bid operators, was approached for comment.

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