Birmingham Christmas markets: rail strikes to hit first weekend of festivities

Visitors to the first weekend of the Birmingham Frankfurt Christmas Market may have to rearrange their plans as it coincides with the latest round of rail strikes.

The market started today (Thursday) and is on until December 23 but many visitors are likely to miss out on the first weekend of festivities as train services across the country grind to a halt.

Here’s how the rail strikes will affect you:

The first weekend of the market, November 5 and 6, will be severely affected by industrial action.

The National Union of Rail Maritime & Transport (RMT) has announced industrial action impacting Network Rail staff on Saturday November 5, Monday 7 and Wednesday 9.

Additionally, RMT members at West Midlands Railway will take industrial action on Saturday November 5 and Wednesday 9. TSSA members have also announced industrial action impacting West Midlands Railway and London Northwestern Railway on Friday November 4.

What to expect this week:

On Saturday November 5, Monday 7 and Wednesday 9 there will be limited services running on the below routes:

• Lichfield - Birmingham - Redditch / Bromsgrove
• Birmingham - Northampton - London Euston
• Birmingham - Wolverhampton - Crewe

Services will only run between 7am and 7pm and these will be extremely limited.

A spokesman said: “West Midlands Railway services will not be operating on any other route. Morning services on days following industrial action are also likely to be impacted.”

As a result of the November 5 strike, trains will be starting later the next day (November 6).

All the rail operating companies that are on strike:

Fourteen train operating companies are taking strike action, according to the RMT. They are:

Chiltern Railways, Cross Country Trains, Greater Anglia, LNER, East Midlands Railway, c2c, Great Western Railway, Northern Trains, South Eastern, South Western Railway, Transpennine Express, Avanti West Coast, West Midlands Trains, and GTR (including Gatwick Express).