Tube strikes to go ahead, confirming week of transport chaos

The First Great Western strike is being held over threats to jobs and services, and the introduction of new trains.

The first strikes brought sections of London to a standstill and cost businesses hundreds of millions of pounds.

The train drivers’ union Aslef is yet to decide on the action it will take.

As was the case with the first two strikes, the dispute between London Underground and the unions is over annual pay and the Night Tube service, which is scheduled to start on 12 September.

Union leaders are set to decide on Monday if next week’s double London Underground strike will go ahead.

Transport for London (TfL) have issued advice to passengers concerning the forthcoming series of tube strikes.

Monday – Tube services will run as normal. We will run whatever Tube services we can on those four days, based on the staff that sign into their shifts. However, most Tube services are unlikely to run at all and those that do run may only serve some stations, and may only run for part of the day.

Staff will walk out for a second time at 6.30pm on Thursday 27th, again shutting down the network for all of Friday 28th. Tube services are expected to be exceptionally busy between 16:30 and 18:30. However, most Tube services are unlikely to run at all and those that do run may only serve some stations, and may only run for part of the day.

Disruption will be exacerbated by a planned walkout by RMT members on City Cruises, one of the major river boat services.

Talks aimed at resolving the dispute have been taking place all week and will resume on Friday.

Steve Griffiths, London Underground’s Chief Operating Officer, said: “Constructive talks with the trade unions are continuing, and we are working hard to resolve the dispute and reach an agreement that protects the work-life balance of our staff and is sustainable, affordable and fair”.