As rail passengers prepare for eight days of disruption from engineering work and industrial action by train drivers, the union boss says he is “incredibly upbeat”.
Mick Whelan, general secretary of the train drivers’ union, Aslef, told The Independent: “It’s hard not to be enthused. We’re 22 months into this – the longest rail strike in history. And we’re still getting mandates of 94 to 99 per cent. We’ve still got picket lines. There’s no wavering.”
Network Rail engineering projects will cause significant problems for many passengers between Saturday and Monday.
The final day of the bank holiday weekend coincides with the start of a six-day overtime ban by train drivers belonging to Aslef, as well as three “rolling” one-day strikes.
The action will mark the third summer of walk-outs since the dispute on pay and working arrangements began. The union has not had talks with the employers – the 14 train operators represented by the Rail Delivery Group – for over a year.
Mr Whelan said: “We want to get around the table and resolve this. We are not the barrier. We are not the cause of this problem. We didn’t start it. We did not want to be here. We want a resolution.
“But it won’t be at all costs. It has to be on the right terms for the people I represent. And after five years without a pay rise, I think they’ve got a right to ask.”
A Rail Delivery Group spokesperson said: “We want to see an end to this dispute and in that spirit, we have written to the Aslef leadership to try and find areas of common ground that will allow us to move to formal negotiations.”
The prospect of any meaningful talks before the industrial action looks extremely unlikely.
The aim of the rolling strikes is to cause as much disruption as possible with minimum loss off pay.
Aslef is targeting London commuter services with a walk-out at many train operators serving the capital on Tuesday 7 May. Almost all services will be halted.
The following day, most intercity trains will be cancelled as drivers working for Avanti West Coast, CrossCountry, GWR and other firms stop work.
On Thursday 9 May, northern England is the target. TransPennine Express and Northern will cancel all trains, while LNER will operate a skeleton service on the London-York-Newcastle-Edinburgh route.
During the overtime ban, thousands of trains are likely to be…
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