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Everyone loves a tube strike, so we’re thrilled to find out that there’s one planned for October – and that railway staff on some London commuter lines will be walking out at the same time. Hooray!
Tube drivers belonging to the Aslef union have voted overwhelmingly for strike action on Thursday October 5. They say they aren’t happy with progress on talks to improve tube staff’s work-life balance, for instance by letting drivers reducing their number of weekend shifts. For its part, TfL says it’s been working closely with the unions on the subject and that it would quite like to avoid a strike situation, thanks very much.
Meanwhile the RMT union has announced that staff on Southern rail, Merseyrail, Arriva Rail North and Greater Anglia will strike on Tuesday October 3 as well as Thursday October 5, as part of the ongoing saga over guards’ jobs. The union claims that its call for talks with the government and Southern’s operator GTR was ignored. GTR say it’s the RMT that isn’t engaging.
We still don’t know which lines will and won’t be running during the strike (watch this space), but if you’re looking to book an autumn break, the first week of October might be a good time.
And before you start, here’s the answer to the question: why isn’t London Underground automated?