National Rail strikes

[whole diary]

[James Vertigan]

http://www.firstgreatwestern.co.uk/Content.aspx?id=4868

FGW^▸ (First Great Western) now giving information on their own site rather than the National Rail site.

As expected there is no Greenford service, but other services are going to be stopping at stations such as Acton Main Line.

I've only briefly browsed the list but I can't work out if the 07:30 train I wil be catching from Paddington on 7th will be going to Newton Abbot, it looks like it's only going as far as Exeter.

[Timmer]

Network Rail's legal team obviously feel they have a case to stop next week's strikes otherwise they wouldn't be going to court. Will the judge hearing their case agree? Watch this space as they say.

[Mookiemoo]

No mention of us worcester people being able to get anywhere

[johoare]

I'm planning to get up really early (no school drop off so I can) and drive to the nearest tube station.. I can only imagine how overcrowded the trains will be..

However, fingers crossed the strike will be called off..

[IndustryInsider]

No mention of us worcester people being able to get anywhere

All those manual signalboxes would suggest to me that providing a service out in Worcester would be very difficult, as suggested by London Midland's and Arriva Trains Wales' apparent lack of services in Worcester and Herefordshire:

The planned London Midland service is as follows:

    * 2 trains per hour between Wolverhampton, Birmingham New Street, Coventry & Northampton.
    * 1 train per hour between Coventry & Nuneaton.
    * 4 trains per hour between Stourbridge Junction, Birmingham Snow Hill, Solihull & Dorridge.
    * 4 trains per hour between Northampton, Milton Keynes, Bletchley, Watford Junction & London Euston.
    * 1 train per hour between Rugby, Nuneaton, Tamworth, Rugeley, Stoke & Crewe.
    * 2 trains per hour between Lichfield, Birmingham New Street, Longbridge & Redditch

Shuttle train services will be running on the following routes:

    * Between Stourbridge Town & Stourbridge Junction
    * Between St Albans & Watford Junction

Only the above routes will have a service, and all services will have stopped by 19:00.

Guess that's the consequence of still living in the signalling dark ages!

[Chris from Nailsea]

Update, from the BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page):

Network Rail takes legal action to stop strikes

Network Rail is taking legal action in a bid to avert next week's planned strikes by signallers and maintenance staff over job cuts and work changes.
The RMT^▸ (National Union of Rail, Maritime & Transport Workers) and the Transport Salaried Staffs' Association (TSSA^» (Transport Salaried Staffs' Association - about)) are planning a four-day walkout from 6 April.
As talks were adjourned, Network Rail said it had served papers on the RMT over the validity of the signallers' ballot and was seeking a court ruling.
The RMT said it would "fight this assault on our union to the hilt".
The union's general secretary Bob Crow said: "I can confirm tonight that RMT is putting together an experienced legal team, including some of the most high-profile employment law experts in the country. We will be mounting the most robust defence possible in the High Court tomorrow against this attack by Network Rail on our internal democracy. This is a scandalous attempt by Network Rail to use the full weight of the anti-union laws to deny our members their basic human right to withdraw their labour and we will fight this assault on our union to the hilt."
An RMT spokesman earlier said the ballot of its members had been "perfectly above-board". The spokesman added: "We have spent two days in talks making some significant progress, only to find the progress has been sabotaged by a threat of Network Rail to use anti-trade union laws to drag us into court tomorrow."
The conciliation service Acas, which is brokering talks between Network Rail and the unions, said discussions would resume on Wednesday morning.
In a statement Network Rail said it had a "responsibility to all our passengers and freight users, and to the country as a whole, to do everything we can to avert a strike. Talks continue and our aim is a negotiated settlement, but we must explore all avenues at our disposal and that includes legal ones."
It said the legal papers served on the RMT highlighted "scores of discrepancies and inaccuracies" in the signallers' ballot and would be raised at a hearing on Wednesday.

[vacman]

All this is just another nail in the RMT^▸ (National Union of Rail, Maritime & Transport Workers)'s coffin, strike now talk later as usual!

[John R]

Strike timetables have now been published.

Can anyone advise in due course what length rolling stock is likely to be provided. One local train per hour in the rush hour from Weston to Bristol and onwards to Cardiff is likely to be a little cosy. Are HSTs^▸ (High Speed Train) likely, given the paring down of the HS^▸ (High Speed (short for HSS^▸ (High Speed Services) High Speed Services)) services?

[Brucey]

One TOC^▸ (Train Operating Company) are still operating a full service ... Island Line.  I believe their franchise includes the maintenance of the tracks, therefore they are completely unaffected by the strike.

Are there going to be any replacement buses on any routes during the strike?  I would have thought that the same procedures would be put in place as when NR^» (Network Rail - home page) close tracks for engineering work?

[devon_metro]

Strike timetables have now been published.

Can anyone advise in due course what length rolling stock is likely to be provided. One local train per hour in the rush hour from Weston to Bristol and onwards to Cardiff is likely to be a little cosy. Are HSTs^▸ (High Speed Train) likely, given the paring down of the HS^▸ (High Speed (short for HSS^▸ (High Speed Services) High Speed Services)) services?

Not likely, however there will be a vast number of DMUs^▸ (Diesel Multiple Unit) to operate a very sparse service, so imagine there will be plenty of paired trains. Not to mention the fact that people will probably chose not to travel if at all possible.

[smokey]

When strikes occur the passenger numbers fall by a heck of a lot.

Even when a TOC^▸ (Train Operating Company) up in the frozen north, like Central had strikes, it puts Passengers off, as many of the public don't realise that a Strike in Birmingham, WON^▸ (Weekly Operating Notice )'T affect trains in the south west.

Off course the media play on Strike days, almost suggesting Nothing will Run, when only 1 TOC is on strike.

[John R]

Strike timetables have now been published.

Can anyone advise in due course what length rolling stock is likely to be provided. One local train per hour in the rush hour from Weston to Bristol and onwards to Cardiff is likely to be a little cosy. Are HSTs^▸ (High Speed Train) likely, given the paring down of the HS^▸ (High Speed (short for HSS^▸ (High Speed Services) High Speed Services)) services?

Not likely, however there will be a vast number of DMUs^▸ (Diesel Multiple Unit) to operate a very sparse service, so imagine there will be plenty of paired trains. Not to mention the fact that people will probably chose not to travel if at all possible.

Normally we get around 22 coaches per hour (2 x HST + 2 x local) between Weston and Bristol so a paired train of 4 coaches won't provide much capacity (can't have any more because the platforms are short), but an HST would be better.

[Chris from Nailsea]

From the BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page):

Train companies unveil revised timetables for strike

Train companies have published revised timetables to cover a planned four-day national rail strike next week.
Members of the RMT^▸ (National Union of Rail, Maritime & Transport Workers) and TSSA^» (Transport Salaried Staffs' Association - about) unions are due to walk out from 6 to 9 April, straight after the Easter bank holiday, in a dispute over pay and work changes.
Train operators say no services will run between 1900 BST and 0700 BST.
Network Rail's bid to halt the strike will be heard at the High Court on Thursday. The RMT has said it will be "robustly defending" its position.
The Association of Train Operating Companies said passengers would be eligible for a refund or be able to switch to another service if their train was cancelled or ran later than originally scheduled.
If there are no trains on a particular route, season ticket holders would be able to claim compensation.
In what would be the first national rail strike since 1994, TSSA supervisors and RMT maintenance workers are set to walk out from 6 to 9 April inclusive, while RMT signal staff will strike from 0600 BST to 1000 BST and 1800 BST to 2200 BST on the same days.
An estimated four out of every five trains would be cancelled, and on the commuter lines into Victoria, Waterloo, Liverpool Street and London Bridge, all in London, that proportion could rise to nine out of every 10.
The conciliation service Acas, which has been brokering talks between Network Rail and the unions, said discussions had resumed.
Network Rail has said it found "scores of discrepancies and inaccuracies" in the RMT's strike ballot of signalling staff.

[Ollie]

Just called the Transport for London information line as some of their lines are shared with Network Rail (two I know off near Wimbledon and northern part of the Metropolitan line with Chiltern) and they don't have a clue, seems Network Rail and TfL^» (Transport for London - about) aren't talking, or if they are, their staff are not being told.

As the advisor told me: "Won't know how it affects until the days the strike happens"

[The SprinterMeister]

From the WNXX^▸ (Stored Unserviceable, Mainline Locos HQ All Classes) railway forum;

"Network Rail has confirmed that legal papers have been served on the RMT^▸ (National Union of Rail, Maritime & Transport Workers) this evening (Tuesday) questioning the validity of the signallers' ballot. Tomorrow (Wednesday) we will go to the High Court to seek an injunction which would mean that the planned strike dates for signallers would not take place.

The talks with the RMT are continuing. Network Rail is fully committed to engaging with the RMT, and doing all we can to reach a negotiated settlement. However, we also have a responsibility to our customers, and to everyone in Britain who relies on rail - and that includes looking at every option we can to avoid a damaging strike."

Network Rail is going to the High Court seeking an injunction to prevent a national rail strike.

Network Rail has uncovered what it believes to be scores of inaccuracies and deficiencies with the signallers ballot, leading the company to conclude in its papers to the RMT that it had ' manifestly failed to comply with the requirements of the Trade Union and Labour Relations Act of 1992'.

The signallers' vote for strike action was very close, with just 112 of the 4,556 balloted needing a different outcome to change the results from 'yes' to no'. The inaccuracies and discrepancies uncovered by the company impact upon almost 300 votes or potential votes

Robin Gisby, director of operations and customer services, said: "We want to find a negotiated settlement to this dispute and talks continue at ACAS, but we have a responsibility to the entire country to head off this strike and let people enjoy their Easter break.

"We believe we have uncovered scores of inaccuracies and discrepancies in the RMT's signallers ballot that in our view, makes it invalid."

These inaccuracies include:

11 signal boxes have been balloted by the RMT that do not exist: most have been closed for years
For example, RMT balloted members at Chalford signal box, near Gloucester , closed in 1965/6. It also balloted members at East Usk signal box, Newport , that burnt down in April 2009
67 locations have been balloted where the numbers of RMT members exceeds the total number of employees that work there
For example, we have three employees at South Tottenham , the RMT asked 11 members to vote. We have 24 employees at Crewe and the RMT invited 33 members to vote
26 workplaces (such as Rugby PSB^▸ (Power Signal Box)) amounting to almost 100 employees, have been completely missed thereby giving RMT members at these locations no opportunity to vote
12 locations were balloted where there are no operations staff at all and thus were ineligible to vote.

After representations were made to our business by the RMT's legal team, Network Rail has agreed to adjourn our application for an injunction at the High Court to prevent a national rail strike until 10am tomorrow (Thursday 1 April).