Striking train drivers ‘here for the long haul’, says union on eve of strike

theguardian.com:

A 24-hour strike by train drivers across nine operating companies will leave large parts of Britain without services on Saturday, in the latest mass action over pay and working conditions on the railways.

The Aslef union warned that striking drivers were “here for the long haul”, on the eve of action that will stop 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 that will severely disrupt rail services nationwide from next Thursday.

The rail industry warned passengers to avoid travel on affected routes on Saturday and to be prepared for very busy trains and possible last-minute changes or cancellations, with disruption expected to persist into early on Sunday.

The drivers going on strike 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 London Overground, CrossCountry, Southeastern, West Midlands and London Northwestern Railway, or Avanti West Coast. Extremely limited services will run on Greater Anglia (including the Stansted Express), Great Western, Hull Trains and LNER.

Aslef’s leader, Mick Whelan, said further stoppages could follow Saturday’s, the union’s second day of coordinated strikes this summer, and with two further strike ballots pending, “we’ll have possibly more operators on strike next time”.

Steve Montgomery, the chair of the Rail Delivery Group, said earlier this week that an “open invitation for talks with Aslef stands”.

He added: “The railway is too important to this country to allow decline,