On Wednesday, a new wave of strikes started, causing rail services to cease in some areas of the nation.
On Saturday, June 3, the day of the FA Cup Final, members of the train drivers' union Aslef went on strike and will do so again. On Friday, members of the RMT will go on strike.
In the protracted dispute over pay and conditions, Aslef claimed there was "no waning in enthusiasm.".
The strikes, according to the government, were planned to interfere with important events.
The strikes on Wednesday will affect 15 train companies, and as a result, services will begin and end much earlier than usual – typically between 07:30BST and 18:30.
There will be about 40% of trains operating, but there will be significant regional variations and some operators may run no services at all. About half of the network is scheduled to go dark during the RMT's action on Friday.
On Saturday, there will be another round of aslef strikes, which will disrupt both the Scottish Cup final at Hampden Park and the first-ever all-Manchester FA Cup final at Wembley.
The strike will also interfere with Beyoncé's London performance as part of her Renaissance world tour, the cricket Test match between England and Ireland at Lord's, and the 100,000 Derby-goers who will be traveling to Epsom.
Football fans will be transported to Wembley on 120 private coaches with a 5,880 seat capacity, according to National Express. These are reserved for match ticket holders who purchased their seats through their club.
The statement continued, though: "Every time there is a rail strike, we see an increase in both inquiries and bookings across our UK-wide scheduled coach network. bookings for travel this week have increased by 30% thus far. ".
The cup final and the end of half-term in many parts of the country, among other reasons, led the motoring organization The RAC to predict that the roads would be "exceptionally busy.".
On Saturday, the AA warned that motorway rest areas were "likely to be incredibly busy" and suggested that non-football fans think about taking a break somewhere else, such as in a nearby town or village.
The general secretary of Aslef, Mick Whelan, declared that train drivers were "determined to get a resolution and remain in this for the long haul.".
However, he asserted on BBC Radio 4's Today program that "zero" progress had been made in negotiations with the Rail Delivery Group (RDG), which is an organization that represents train operators, and he charged the government with being shady.
We enter negotiations in good faith, but [the RDG] then cunningly offers deals we are unable to accept.
We'll have to find a solution eventually because my members believe they are entitled to one after going four years without a pay increase, especially in light of the current cost-of-living crisis. " .
The cost of the protracted strike is also being calculated by business.
Nothing has hit us harder, according to Tristan Moffat, owner of the London bar Piano Works.
"The train strikes really hurt the company's bottom line, and we need a period of stability at a time when so many companies are already on the verge of failure. " .
Passengers are advised to check the last train times on the evenings prior to strike days and the mornings following strikes as it is likely that evening services on some lines will be impacted on the days before each strike.
Mr. Whelan asserted that there was never a day in this country when a pop concert or other event wasn't taking place while denying that this weekend's strikes had been timed to coincide with significant occasions. .
However, a spokesperson for RDG claimed that the walkouts would annoy families on vacation during the half-term and "cause disappointment and frustration for tens of thousands of people.".
A spokesperson for the Department of Transport further stated that the unions made their members forgo pay each time they went on strike.
"Union leaders must do the right thing and put this to their members," they continued. "The government has facilitated a fair and reasonable pay offer.".
Get in touch if you are affected by the train strikes or if you are participating in the strike.
According to Aslef and the RMT, neither organization has received a pay offer that they can recommend to their members.
Unions claim that wages have not increased at a rate that keeps up with the fastest rate of cost-of-living increases in nearly 40 years.
The most recent offer, which Aslef's leadership rejected, included a 4 percent pay increase in year one and an additional 4 percent increase in year two, subject to the union accepting changes to the way it works.
In addition to giving employers control over rotas, they modify driver training requirements and Sunday work commitments.
- Western Avanti.
- the Chiltern Railways.
- CrossCountry.
- Railway in the East Midlands.
- Railway Great Western.
- larger Anglia.
- Thameslink in the Great North.
- The Govia Thameslink Railway.
- Railroad London North Eastern.
- The Northern Trains.
- Southeastern.
- Express Gatwick/Southern.
- drivers at SWR depots.
- Island SWR Line.
- Pennine Express.
- Trains in the West Midlands.
The incident won't affect the London Underground.
