Rail strikes and August Bank Holidays repair work to affect Birmingham trains

Travel disruptions are nowhere near its end as passengers coped with another rail strike on August 13 and there’s still more coming. Travelling to and from Birmingham will be severely affected over this week and beyond because of industrial action and planned repair works, the West Midlands Railway admitted.

Avanti West Coast announced it was on a reduced timetable from 14 August till further notice because of the industrial actions that were planned and an unofficial stike from Aslef members.

A number of train operators will be affected because of the industrial action. Only essential travel is advised during the following period since there will be limited travel options.

18-21 August

RMT union members intend to strike on Thursday 18 August and Saturday 20 August, and TSSA union members have voted in favour of action short of a strike between Thursday 18 August- Saturday 20 August. Only about 20% of Britain’s rail network will be open on the days of the strike but with limited service from around 07:30 to 18:30, announced Network Rail.

Disruption is also expected on 19 August and 21 August due to the knock-on effect. If you are planning to travel to London, beware that on 19 August there is a strike by the London Underground. There will be limited network on Thursday 18 August and Saturday 20 August and signigicant disruption on Friday 19 August.

London Northwestern Railway services will not be running on other routes. You can only find them on the following ones:

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

Which services will be affected?

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).

27-29 August

There wil be slight disruption over the August Bank Holiday weekend since essential engineering works are being delivered by Network Rail. On Saturday 27 and Monday 29 August, the timetable between Lichfield Trent Valley – Bromsgrove / Redditch via Birmingham New Street will be amended. Most trains from Lichfield Trent Valley to Birmingham New Street will run slightly earlier between Lichfield Trent Valley and Lichfield City / Birmingham New Street, some trains from Birmingham New Street to Lichfield Trent Valley will run slightly later than usual.

On Sunday 28 August, trains between Birmingham New Street – Crewe via Stoke-on-Trent will run to an amended timetable between Birmingham New Street – Wolverhampton. It will not call at Tame Bridge Parkway.

Throughout the weekend (Saturday 27 – Monday 29 August), London Northwestern Railway services between Northampton – London Euston will also be impacted by engineering works.

RMT is also hosting a 24 hours strike action on 27 July.

What did RMT say?

RMT general secretary Mick Lynch said: “The rail industry and the government need to understand that this dispute will not simply vanish. They need to get serious about providing an offer on pay which helps deal with the cost-of-living crisis, job security for our members and provides good conditions at work. Recent proposals from Network Rail fell well short on pay and on safety around maintenance work.

“And the train operating companies have not even made us a pay offer in recent negotiations. Now Grant Shapps has abandoned his forlorn hopes for the job of Prime Minister, he can now get back to his day job and help sort this mess out. We remain open for talks, but we will continue our campaign until we reach a negotiated settlement.”

What did TSSA say?

TSSA General Secretary Manuel Cortes said: “Our union has a strong mandate for strike action at Network Rail in these grades and walkouts will have a huge impact. Our members are simply asking for basic fair treatment: not to be sacked from their jobs, a fair pay rise in the face of a cost-of-living-crisis and no race to the bottom on terms and conditions.

“No one takes strike action lightly, but we have been left with little choice. Our General Grades and Controllers are a force to be reckoned with. Without them the rail network does not run, it is that simple.”

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