Britain’s largest rail strike in decades is set to come to an abrupt halt today when more than 50,000 railway workers protest over their pay and working conditions.
The militant Aslef, RMT, and TSSA unions have been on strike for 24 hours. This is one of most popular sporting weekends in the year. Only 11 percent of services will be open.
The disruption will severely affect the 50,000 people who are expected to travel to the London Marathon on Sunday, with runners now being allowed to sign in a day earlier than usual in a bid to avoid delays.
Football fans will be affected by the chaos in travel as the Premier League begins its return on Saturday. Seven fixtures are expected to draw more than 200 000 spectators to the stadiums.
The matches include Arsenal v Tottenham Hotspur, Chelsea v Crystal Palace, Fulham v Newcastle United, Liverpool v Brighton & Hove Albion and Southampton v Everton.
Numerous horse racing lovers will be unable to travel today to attend a number of events, such as Fontwell, Wolverhampton Redcar, Redcar, and Wolverhampton.
The task of Rugby fans today will be difficult, with Saracens taking on Leicester Tigers and London Irish taking on Bath.
The major rail unions are collaborating to coordinate walkouts for the first time ever in history.
Only 11% of services are available on one of the most busy sporting weekends of year, with members of militant Aslef and RMT unions striking for 24 hours
This is the first ever time that several unions joined hands to organize walk-outs at once. (Pictured, Passenger trying to get to Paddington Station on day one of three strikes.
RMT union is leading strikes (Pictured by Boss Mick Lynch).
Machine Gun Kelly, pop star and Andrea Bocelli, the Italian Tenor might have a lot of empty seats for their concert in Washington on Saturday.
Delegates heading to the Conservative Party Conference in Birmingham for the weekend will also be impacted.
RMT members in Scotland will go on strike on October 10 after rail workers plan more walk outs for October 5th and 8.
Mick Whelan, Aslef’s boss, warned Friday that more strikes are ‘inevitable’ because of a lack in progress on the dispute.
Add to the confusion is a series of engineering work that affects routes in London Reading, Oxford and Newcastle as well as other locations.
However, the planned strike of bus drivers was canceled and a total meltdown in travel was avoided. The union announced Friday that Arriva, North London’s employer of Unite members, had offered 11% more pay to them.
According to train operators, anyone considering traveling by rail must conduct frequent checks prior to departing home.
Aslef’s general secretary Mick Whelan told PA News Agency his members are growing increasingly frustrated by the inability to resolve the dispute.
He stated that he didn’t wish to go on strike but the dispute would continue until the government releases the rail companies from their shackles.
“The message from my colleagues is that they are looking for more industrial action. I feel more strikes should be expected.”
Tomorrow’s rail strike will mark the first day that unions walk out simultaneously, so service disruptions will be greater than those experienced on other strikes days.
It will be a severe disruption for the estimated 50,000 runners who travel to London Marathon this Sunday.
Travel chaos is also expected to hit football fans when the Premier League returns, with seven fixtures that are anticipated to attract more than 200,000 people from all over the country. (Pictured : Emirates Stadium in London which can hold 60,000 spectators)
It will take longer for trains to start and end in the morning than they do in the afternoon.
This Saturday, unlike previous strikes, there won’t be any trains connecting London with a variety of major UK cities, such as Edinburgh, Liverpool and Newcastle.
It is important to know when the last train departs for passengers that must travel, such as those who are planning to watch or participate in the London Marathon.
It is also possible that some disturbances may occur in the morning on Sunday, October 2, as workers return to their duties.
Andrew Haines is the Network Rail chief executive. He stated that despite our efforts to reach a compromise and make a deal in negotiations, rail unions are determined on continuing their coordinated strike action.
“This only serves to ensure that our employees forgo more of their wages unnecessarily as well as creating more disruption for passengers and further damaging railway recovery from pandemic.
Passengers who plan to travel Saturday or Wednesday are requested to cancel their reservation unless absolutely necessary. People who have to travel must be prepared for disruptions and check the departure time of their last train.
Daniel Mann, Director of Industry Operations at Rail Delivery Group said that these strikes were unnecessary and harmful. They interrupt passengers’ plans and undermine struggling companies, disrupt major events, and damage the industry’s recovery.
“It’s particularly disappointing that the strike this weekend will impact the plans of thousands who trained hard for the London Marathon.
“That will also punish many charities large and small who depend upon sponsorship money from such events in order to support our most vulnerable members of the community.
“While we do our best to maintain certain services, we recommend that passengers only use rail when absolutely necessary.
Passengers with off-peak tickets, advance or any other ticket can travel on the same day as the booking date or even up to 4 October. You can cancel or reschedule your train ticket to change the date you want or receive a refund.
Transport for London (TfL), a London-based transport company, warned it that the strike action would affect its services. There is no expected service on London Overground this Saturday or next Wednesday.
Both the Elizabeth Line and London Underground will be affected.
Piccadilly Line Service to Heathrow is not available on Saturday 1, and Sunday 2 due to essential engineering work.
The majority of public transportation networks will continue to operate as normal, however customers are advised not to travel until they have checked and allow more time.
Trish Ashton (TfL’s director for rail and sponsored services) stated: “Customers will still have the ability to travel during these strike including using bus networks, but we strongly recommend that they plan ahead and confirm before they travel.
“There are expected disruptions to London’s railway services over the weekend and next. Some parts of Tube will also be affected.
There will be many public transportation options in London. However, some people are advised to walk or cycle for certain journeys.
The strike threatened to frustrate runners and spectators who tried to reach London on Sunday for the start of the London Marathon at Greenwich.
The disruption is due to members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport union (pictured: Mick Lynch, RMT general-secretary), Aslef, Unite and the Transport Salaried Staffs’ Association staging a co-ordinated walkout
Railway passengers are being advised to not travel by rail on Saturday, Oct 1, due to a strike of workers. The strike will affect 89 percent of the network.
No trains will arrive before 9 am for any train travelling to central London.
Services will not start until 9:30 am on Sunday. Only those who are within a reasonable distance of the London Marathon start line will be able to reach it.