Rail passengers to suffer travel chaos on Saturday during RMT strike – here’s all you need to know
Rail passengers will suffer fresh travel chaos on Saturday as thousands of workers strike in a long-running row over pay, jobs and conditions.
Services will be disrupted when members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union, including station staff and train managers, walk out.
Passengers have been advised to check their travel arrangements because the strike action will see wide variations of services across the country, with trains due to start later and finish much earlier than usual.
In some areas only around half of train services will run, while others will have no services at all.
Services on some lines are also likely to be affected on Friday evening and Sunday morning.
A Rail Delivery Group spokesperson said the strike will disrupt the plans of families during the summer holidays.
They said: “This will lead to disappointment, frustration and financial strain for tens of thousands of people. We apologise for the inconvenience caused and understand the impact on individuals and businesses.
“Our advice is to check before you travel.”
Picket lines will be mounted outside railway stations across England and workers said they were receiving strong support for their action from the public.
RMT general secretary Mick Lynch said striking rail workers are still waiting for an invitation back to the negotiating table.
He said: “We’ve been on strike for over a year. This campaign’s probably been running for two years.
“The issues are the same. They’re attacking our jobs. They’re making redundancies. They’re closing services.
“We haven’t had a pay rise for four years and the people that remain, they want to cut our conditions and issue new contracts of employment.
“There is not an agreement in sight at the moment but we remain available for negotiation with the companies and with the Government – but that’s up to them to invite us back to the table so that we can work up some solutions to the dispute.”
Members of drivers’ union Aslef will stop working overtime next month in a separate dispute over pay.
A Department for Transport spokesperson said: “The Government has met the rail unions, listened to them and facilitated improved offers on pay and reform.
“The union leaders should put these fair and reasonable offers to their members so this dispute can be resolved.”
Alan Jones – Press Association