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…