Southeastern is warning there will be severe disruption to train services in the first week of January as strike action by the RMT and ASLEF trade unions takes place.
On Tuesday 3rd, Wednesday 4th, Friday 6th and Saturday 7th January only a very limited service will operate on the Dartford lines, the Sevenoaks line, and the Highspeed route via Ashford while the RMT stages industrial action.
On Thursday 5th January, no trains will run at all because of action by the ASLEF trade union.
Scott Brightwell, Southeastern Operations and Safety Director, said: “We’re very sorry for the inconvenience that this industrial action by the RMT and ASLEF unions has caused. On RMT strike days, some routes will have a very limited service, and there will be no trains at all in some places. On Thursday 5th January there will be no trains on any of our lines. We urge you to check our dedicated, up-to-date, strike page before travelling.
“Train services are expected to be extremely busy on the routes that are running on RMT strike days, and so we’d advise our customers to make their journeys later in the morning and earlier in the evening if they can.”
Journey planners at www.southeasternrailway.co.uk and www.nationalrail.co.uk, as well as on the Southeastern app, are up to date.
Rail workers are striking in a dispute over pay, conditions and passenger safety issues. The RMT say this includes: “unsafe practices for the travelling public such as a 50% cut in scheduled maintenance tasks and an unacceptable hike in unsocial hours.
“On the train operators, RMT members would have been forced to accept a paltry pay sum, Driver Only Operations (DOO) across the whole network, and the closure of all ticket offices creating an inaccessible and less safe railway.”
