For info, here is the latest update from GTR on rail services during industrial action in May & June 2023
As you are likely to be aware, industrial action will affect train services on various dates from mid-May to early June 2023. We know how inconvenient this will be for customers, and this briefing is to provide an overview to help with planning journeys. As always, we would be grateful if you could use your networks to ensure this information is shared as widely as possible.
There are three types of industrial action confirmed to be taking place, each with a different impact:
1. ASLEF strike action on Friday 12 May, Wednesday 31 May and Saturday 3 June– On these dates there will be no train service in any location.
2. RMT strike action on Saturday 12 May – On this date, similar to the experience in March 2023, services will be limited across the network, with a post 07:00 start, an early shut down and no service in some locations.
3. ASLEF ban of overtime between Monday 15 May – Saturday 20 May inclusive and Thursday 1 June – On these dates, with the exception of Saturday 20 May, an amended timetable with fewer services will run.
Trade unions need to provide two weeks’ notice of industrial action, meaning there is the possibility of additional action being confirmed within the range of dates set out above. Should this happen, we will let you know.
As there is considerable variation between days, it will be really important that customers use journey planners such as at www.nationalrail.co.uk or on our websites to plan their journeys. On dates where train services are available, we are recommending that customers plan carefully and expect longer waiting times and busier trains.
The table below shows dates affected by industrial action in the left column and the expected update for journey planners in the right column.
Services during ASLEF overtime ban
We know many customers will now sadly be familiar with the effect of either RMT or ASLEF strike action on the network. The ASLEF overtime ban between Monday 15 May and Saturday 20 May inclusive and on Thursday 1 June (day after ASLEF strike on 31 May) is however a new impact.
Our approach between Monday 15 and Friday 19 May inclusive is to introduce an amended timetable to provide greater certainty to customers about train times and frequencies with the aim of avoiding last minute cancellations due to the overtime ban.
This is needed because our usual service has some overtime built in - called rest day working. This provides greater flexibility to help cover sickness, holidays or release for training. Behind the scenes, the timetable is connected, so for example one driver’s shift may connect lots of other shifts together – meaning having just one uncovered shift can have a disproportionate impact. This means we cannot run our normal timetable while this industrial action is taking place.
The amended timetable will for the Govia Thameslink Railway network as a whole, provide approximately 75% of a normal weekday’s service. This will vary by individual route, but it has been designed using our weekday service as a base to try and cover as many typical journeys such as school travel as possible.
Customers will be able to plan journeys from Wednesday 10 May and summary information is available on the industrial action pages of our websites such as Thameslink - Industrial action (thameslinkrailway.com).
Our advice to customers is to plan journeys carefully and to anticipate busier trains and the potential need to queue, particularly for peak time services. As you likely know, Mondays and Fridays are much less busy than other weekdays, so customers with some flexibility in their travel plans may benefit from switching to these dates or similarly by travelling outside the high peak of central London arrivals between 08:00 and 09:00, and departures between 17:00 and 18:00.
On Saturday 20 May, the service level will be different and much closer to the customer experience of an RMT strike date with a late start to services, an early finish and no service on some routes. This is because there has been insufficient time to create both a weekday and a Saturday plan, so we are using the next available option, amended for engineering work, as while it is limited, it is reliable and provides options for key locations on our network such as airports.
Our planning team is still working on Thursday 1 June. Our intention is to run an amended timetable as per 15-19 May, but this is complicated by the national timetable changing on 21 May, meaning the existing plan will not work off the shelf, as well as ASLEF strike action on the previous day. The alternative will be a reduced service similar to an RMT strike date.
We know how disruptive this period of industrial action will be for our customers, so your help in ensuring as many passengers as possible have this information and check journey planners before they travel is invaluable. As always, should you have any questions, please let us know.
