Strike action underway on Northern rail network

Train passengers are facing disruption this weekend as Northern rail workers stage a three-day walkout.
Northern services across Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire will be affected by the industrial action.Northern services across Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire will be affected by the industrial action.
Northern services across Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire will be affected by the industrial action.

The industrial action by members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT) is taking place on Saturday July 8, Sunday July 9 and Monday July 10, over the future role of guards, concerns over driver-only operations and safety concerns.

Northern is expecting to run - on average - more than 40 per cent of rail services across its network, with additional rail replacement buses on some routes.

On Saturday and Monday, the majority of services will run between 7am and 7pm, though many routes will start to wind down from late afternoon. On Sunday, most services will operate between 9am and 5pm.

Services will be running to revised timetables, and these can be found at www.northernrailway.co.uk/industrialaction. Information will also be displayed on posters at all stations across the Northern network and on customer information screens where available.

All services are expected to be extremely busy and Northern is asking customers to allow extra time for journeys and to plan carefully.

Sharon Keith, Regional Director for Northern, said: “Being able to run more than 40 per cent of services, supplemented by the extra rail replacement buses, means we will be able to keep the north of England on the move.

“Our amended timetables have been developed to provide the best possible cover across the three days and to try to best meet the needs of our leisure customers at the weekend and commuters on Monday.

“We have worked to prioritise services on our busiest routes, at the busiest times of day. But we expect all services to be busy and ask our customers to plan ahead accordingly.”

Arriva Trains Wales, East Midlands Trains and Cross Country have agreed to add extra stops to some of their timetabled services – calling at stations usually served by Northern.

Across the three days of the strike Arriva Trains Wales services between Manchester Piccadilly and Shrewsbury will additionally call at Sandbach, Holmes Chapel and Alderley Edge. On Monday, services between Manchester and Chester will additionally call at Patricroft.

A similar agreement is in place with East Midlands Trains with some Liverpool to Norwich services – and vice versa – calling at Dronfield, Langley Mill, Ilkeston, Dore, Chinley and Hazel Grove.

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