When are the next train strikes? Avanti West Coast walkouts to run until summer

Rail strikes are back with a vengeance. Passengers on Avanti West Coast face months of disruption. Walk-outs began on 31 December and are set to continue until the late May bank holiday weekend.

Train managers working for the West Coast main line operator and who belong to the RMT union walked out on New Year’s Eve and Thursday 2 January. They will now strike every Sunday between 12 January and 25 May – a total of 20 days, disrupting the plans of up to 100,000 passengers for each of the chosen dates.

These are the key questions and answers.

Avanti West Coast: what routes does it operate?

The main network covers around 700 miles of track. It centres on the West Coast main line to and from London Euston. The main cities served are:

Coventry, Stoke-on-Trent, Preston, Carlisle and Edinburgh are among the other cities on the network.

In addition, Avanti West Coast runs along the North Wales coast, connecting Crewe and Chester with the port of Holyhead.

What is the dispute about?

Payments to train managers for working on their rest days.

RMT members say they are poorly rewarded compared with the sums earned by “management train managers”. These are senior managers employed in desk-based roles for Avanti West Coast, who have been trained to stand in as train managers when essential to keep trains running.

An improved offer from the rail firm was put to union members, which Avanti says is worth around £250 for each eight-hour shift worked on a rest day, or £300 at weekends.

But Mick Lynch, the outgoing general secretary of the RMT, says: “It is wrong that Avanti is paying replacement managers up to £500 per shift – around double what our members earn – while these managers fail to deliver the same service for passengers.

Train drivers employed by Avanti earn a flat £600 for working on a day off.

In a referendum on the improved pay offer, train managers resoundingly rejected it; seven out of 10 of all those eligible to vote were in favour of walking out.

“This destructive approach is typical of train operating companies and stems from the failed policies of the previous Conservative government, which rewarded excessive payouts for managers rather than resolving disputes fairly,” Mr Lynch said.

What does Avanti West Coast say?

Kathryn O’Brien, executive director of Customer Experience at Avanti West Coast, said: “We’re disappointed by the RMT calling strike action for an extended period when our customers may be working, visiting family and friends, or enjoying days out.

“As a result, they will face significantly disrupted journeys during this time. I would like to thank them for their patience and understanding.

“On the strike days we’ll have a reduced service, so customers with tickets for those days are strongly advised to travel on alternative dates or claim a full fee-free refund. We remain open to working with the RMT to resolve the dispute.”

The train operator believes its offer will make Avanti West Coast train managers among the best rewarded in the business for rest-day working.

What does the government say?

After the strike call, a Department for Transport (DfT) spokesperson said: “This is incredibly disappointing news for passengers who would have been hoping to leave strike action in 2024.”

The transport secretary, Heidi Alexander, has put the ball firmly in the rail firm’s court. She told Sky News: “What I want to see happen is for the leadership of Avanti West Coast, which is currently a privately owned train operating company, to get back round the table with the RMT to see what can be done to avoid action happening.”

In other words, offer more cash. Ultimately, though, extra payments would be funded by the taxpayer.

What is the effect?

A significantly reduced timetable is in place on strike days., with fewer services running during limited operating hours. The first train of the day departs Euston at 7.30-8am and the last train of the day will leave before 5pm.

Management train managers are deployed to run these trains. On Sunday 12 January, the intercity operator is expected to run one train per hour between Euston and each of Birmingham, Manchester, Liverpool and Preston.

Rail replacement buses were already planned to run between Preston and Carlisle due to planned engineering work. No trains will serve Lancaster, Oxenholme or Penrith.

Some trains will shuttle between Carlisle and Glasgow.

All trains will operate during limited hours. The first and last trains from Euston are as follows:

The first and last trains to Euston are as follows:

North Wales, Blackpool and Edinburgh, Stoke-on-Trent and Macclesfield will have no Avanti West Coast services.

“With fewer services running during shorter hours of operation, trains are expected to be busy, and customers are strongly advised to travel either side of the strike days,” says Avanti West Coast.

“Customers who do travel should plan ahead, expect disruption, and check the details of their last train home.”

Thousands of football fans planning to go to away games will be unable to travel by train.

On Sunday 12 January, Manchester United supporters will encounter problems travelling to Arsenal’s north London ground for the FA Cup third round fixture, while Stockport County fans will find it difficult to reach Crystal Palace in south London.

The following Sunday, Everton host Spurs and Manchester United play Brighton at Old Trafford.

Later in the month, the 26 January strike will coincide with the closure of the East Coast main line from Edinburgh via Newcastle and York to London King’s Cross, meaning both Anglo-Scottish routes will be out of action for the day.

Wasn’t the government going to end rail strikes?

Yes. The first Labour transport secretary, Louise Haigh, vowed to “focus relentlessly” on improving performance on the railways and introduce “much-needed rail reform”.

Train drivers, who had been in a pay dispute for two years, received a 15 per cent settlement – covering three years – and ended their dispute.

Since then Ms Haigh has since been replaced by Heidi Alexander.

A DfT spokesperson said: “As part of our plans to reform the railways, we’re determined to move towards a seven-day working week and end the over-reliance on rest day working, giving passengers the certainty and reliability they deserve.”

The RMT, meanwhile, has the stated objective to “work for the supersession of the capitalist system by a socialistic order of society”.

Shouldn’t Avanti West Coast and other train firms just employ more staff?

Yes, according to RMT leader Mick Lynch: “At the core of this issue is a severe staffing shortage, which has created an over-reliance on overtime in the first place.”

But if any rail firm increased its workforce to cover all possible shortfalls caused by illness, annual leave and training requirements, many of those staff would be under-employed for much of the year.

Rail finances are in a terrible mess, with taxpayers currently paying a subsidy of £12.5bn annually, equivalent to £400 per second, to keep the trains running.

Unless revenue can rise substantially – which is unlikely given the continuing unreliability of trains – it is more likely that jobs will be cut than increased.

One rail insider said they were “baffled” by the dispute, adding: “There’s no shortage of volunteer train managers at the current rates of pay. So obviously ‘the market’ can’t see a problem.”

Anything else for rail passengers to worry about?

Several other RMT disputes are in progress. Votes in favour of strike action have been passed in disputes on Boxing Day payments for service control staff on London Underground and on annual leave entitlement for Avanti West Coast train managers based at Holyhead.