Aslef union warned striking drivers were “here for the long haul”, ahead of action which will halt most intercity trains on routes between London and the Midlands, northern England and Scotland, and affect trains in many other parts of Britain . The drivers’ action is the first in a week of strikes by four separate transport unions which will seriously disrupt rail services across the country from next Thursday. The rail industry warned passengers to avoid traveling on the affected routes on Saturday and to be prepared for very busy trains and possible last-minute changes or cancellations, with disruption expected to continue into the early hours of Sunday. The striking drivers are those who work for Arriva Rail London, Avanti West Coast, CrossCountry, Greater Anglia, Great Western, Hull Trains, LNER, West Midlands Trains and Southeastern. No trains will run on the London Overground, CrossCountry, Southeastern, West Midlands and London Northwestern Railway or Avanti West Coast. Extremely limited services will run on Greater Anglia (including Stansted Express), Great Western, Hull Trains and LNER. Aslef chief Mick Whelan said further stoppages could follow after Saturday, the union’s second day of concerted strikes this summer, and with two more strike ballots pending, “we will probably have more operators on strike next time”. Steve Montgomery, the chairman of Rail Delivery Group, said earlier this week that an “open invitation to talks with Aslef remains”. He added: “Rail is too important to this country to allow it to fall, but with passenger numbers still 20% below pre-pandemic levels, ensuring a bright future means we must adapt to attract more people back.” Whelan said he was open to further talks but added: “I have never been in a situation before where the cartel of companies have agreed through the back door with the government that they will cap our pay. We talk to people who don’t have time to deal with us.” He said the government had started a “trickle-down on driver wages” before the dispute, but wages had been negotiated with companies for many years since privatisation. “People say anyone can [drive trains] – No, no one can do that. Lots of people fail their aptitude and driving tests – and they don’t like waking up at 3.10am. for an 11-hour shift or working 70-80% of weekends away from their families.” However, he said: “The idea that we’re going to be stigmatized and blamed doesn’t work.” With others such as lawyers, police and nurses threatening strikes, he said: “You have a national political problem.” Drivers were overwhelmingly behind the strike, Whelan said: “Like many people who stood up to be counted during the pandemic, they are unhappy with a government that applauded them and now seems to want to inflict pain on them. “We go tomorrow… People are very ready for this and understand that we may be here for the long haul. We don’t want to be, but there is a recognition that this may not be resolved quickly.” One of the firms in dispute, Avanti West Coast, has already cut timetables for a month due to few drivers volunteering to work on the day off, which it has publicly described as an “unofficial strike” – aligned with transport secretary Grant Shapps , which Ashlef had earlier denounced as “lies” about drivers choosing not to work overtime. Subscribe to Business Today Get ready for the business day – we’ll point you to all the business news and analysis you need every morning Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain information about charities, online advertising and content sponsored by external parties. For more information, see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and Google’s Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. Whelan said: “When someone is stupid enough to lie about it, they lose even more goodwill and it takes even longer to convince [staff] back.” Labor said ministers should urgently request a plan from Avanti to restore services. Shadow transport secretary Louise Haigh said: “If the private operator can’t fulfill its contract, it has no business keeping it.” The Department for Transport said Avanti’s move was “inevitable”. A spokesman said: “This is a prime example of why we need to modernize our railways so that passengers benefit from reliable services that don’t rely on the goodwill of drivers volunteering to work overtime in the first place.” Avanti declined to comment, but it is understood the DfT has approved its reduced timetable, which has cut the number of trains between London, Birmingham and Manchester by two-thirds by September. Avanti will not face any penalty and will continue to receive fees as Shapps sees the move as industrial action. More widespread unrest is looming, with 40,000 members of the RMT union at Network Rail and 14 rail companies holding two 24-hour strikes on August 18 and 20, when several thousand TSSA members at Network Rail and seven train operators will also take action. The lack of signals will allow only about a fifth of the usual timetable to run. Subscribe to the Business Today daily email or follow Guardian Business on Twitter @BusinessDesk Network Rail chief executive Andrew Haines said: “I am sorry that we are once again having to ask passengers to stay off the rail for two days next week due to unnecessary strike action when we should be helping them to enjoy their summers. “We have made a good and fair offer but, with the exception of the ranks of TSSA management who have accepted the deal, our unions are refusing to let our employees have a say.” RMT members and some Unite members at Transport for London and London Overground will also go on strike on August 19, disrupting most Underground services in the capital.
