UK Faces More Rail Disruptions as Train Drivers Decide to Strike

A train comes into Queen Street Station in Glasgow, Scotland, on June 23, 2022. (Jeff J Mitchell /Getty Images)

UK rail services face more disruptions after train drivers at eight rail companies decided to stage a 24-hour strike later this month over a pay dispute.

The Associated Society of Locomotive Engineers and Firemen (Aslef), a trade union representing train drivers, said its members at Arriva Rail London, Chiltern Railways, Greater Anglia, Great Western, Hull Trains, LNER, Southeastern, and West Midlands Trains will walk out on July 30.

Drivers on Greater Anglia will also strike on July 23, and those on Hull Trains will strike on July 16 and 23.

Transport Secretary Grant Shapps delivers a speech to set out the government's vision to create a reformed and modernised railway, at Siemens Traincare Facility Mobility Division Rail Systems in north London on June 16, 2022. (A/PA Media)

The action is in addition to a planned strike by the Rail, Maritime, and Transport union (RMT) at train companies and Network Rail on July 27 and by Transport Salaried Staffs’ Association (TSSA) members on Avanti West Coast on the same day.

Transport Secretary Grant Shapps has condemned the planned strike action for being “destructive,” as it will take place just days after the start of the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham.

‘Only Option’

Aslef general secretary Mick Whelan said the drivers do not want to go on strike but have been “forced into this position by the train companies, driven by the Tory government.”

He said the drivers have had a real-terms pay cut over the last three years, which he said is “not acceptable.”

“Strike action is now the only option available but we are always open to talks if the train companies, or the government, want to talk to us and make a fair and sensible offer,” he said.

‘Incredibly Disappointing’

Shapps called the union’s decision “incredibly disappointing.”

He accused the union bosses of trying to derail the Commonwealth Games.

“By seemingly coordinating strike dates around the Commonwealth Games, it’s clear union bosses are determined to cause as much misery as possible and derail an event the whole country is looking forward to,” he said.

Shapps said train drivers earn an average annual salary of nearly £60,000 ($71,000), more than twice the national average, and “significantly more than the very workers who will be most impacted by these strikes.”

The Rail Delivery Group, which represents train companies, said the planned strike will “cause misery, frustration, and anger for millions.”

It said the industrial action will “take money out of an industry” and make it harder to give a pay rise in the future.

PA Media contributed to this report.