news December and January dates and the train companies affected

news December and January dates, and the train companies affected

Train passengers have been hit with another wave of 48-hour strikes in the run up to Christmas. Rail union leaders have extinguished hopes of calling off planned walkouts, after

“intensive talks” failed to break the deadlock in an industrial dispute that has prevented overdue reforms to Britain's railways. Trains will stop running between 2am on the

strike day to 2am on the following day, causing two days of disruption. It had been hoped that through negotiations, critical changes to working practices could be agreed upon.

Changes that would save money and allow the wider rail industry to balance the books in the post-Covid world. But hopes of a truce were dashed when the Rail, Maritime and Transport

workers union (RMT) announced its 40,000 members will walk out over eight days – the biggest strikes to date in the dispute – effectively crippling the rail network for the

best part of a week before Christmas and another week in the New Year. Taking into account scheduled engineering works and further regional strike action between Christmas and New

Year, some lines will be largely out of service for the best part of a month from the middle of December. What dates are the train strikes in December and January? Nationwide RMT

strikes Tuesday December 13Wednesday December 14Friday December 16Saturday December 17Tuesday January 3Wednesday January 4Friday January 6Saturday January 7 On strike days, it is

expected that just one in five trains will run and nearly all operators will be impacted. On the days following a strike – so-called “shoulder days” – timetables will be

roughly 60pc of normal. There is also a new overtime and rest day working ban. The railways typically work on the assumption that staff will work overtime and on rest days. A union

ban on this could cause further havoc. Train bumps are assessing the impact and will adjust timetables accordingly. There are also a series of further regional rail strikes on

other dates in December: Regional strikes Friday December 2 - Unit strike impacting East Midlands RailwaysSaturday December 3 - Unit strike impacting East Midlands RailwaysSunday

11 December - RMT Avanti West Coast strikeMonday 12 December - RMT Avanti West Coast strikeFriday December 23 - Unit strike impacting East Midlands RailwaysSaturday December 24 -

Unit strike impacting East Midlands Railways Avanti has said it expects its services to be significantly reduced on 11/12 December due to industrial action. East Midlands Railway

has warned services will be extremely limited with last departures by 4.30pm on strike days. Which train operators are affected? Nearly every train line will be impacted in some Find Out More