REMINDER: 8 October national strike - travel only if absolutely necessary on Great Northern, Southern and Thameslink

Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) is reminding passengers to travel only if absolutely necessary with Southern, Great Northern or Thameslink this Saturday, 8 October, due to strikes by the RMT union at Network Rail and UK train operators.

Striking signallers at Network Rail will have the greatest impact on the service, leading operator Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) to focus on providing a service on its busiest mainline routes only.

This map shows the strike day service, which operates as follows:

Strike day Saturday 8 October – travel only if absolutely necessary

• There will be no service at all on most lines south of London, across the heart of London itself, into London Moorgate, or on the route between Ely and King’s Lynn (see map).
• Pre-planned engineering work will also stop trains running between Balham and West Croydon via Crystal Palace.
• Overall, across Great Northern, Southern and Thameslink, there will be very few trains (around 21%) with crowding expected, particularly on first and last trains.
• Trains won’t start until 7.30am and they’ll finish early, between 4.30pm and 6.30pm. Passengers need to check what this means for their journeys as the first trains of the day may not reach stations until considerably later.
• Gatwick Express will not operate, although the airport will have a limited Southern and Thameslink service of eight trains an hour in each direction.

Sunday 9 October – services start much later

• Services will start later the morning after, at around 7.30am. Morning trains are likely to be very busy. Customers are recommended to travel later, plan their journeys and check again before travelling.

Customer information

• Online journey planners such as www.nationalrail.co.uk are up to date with the latest service information.

Angie Doll, Chief Operating Officer, Govia Thameslink Railway, said:

“It is with much regret that we have to advise our passengers to travel only if absolutely necessary on Saturday 8 October. Strike action means train services across the country will be significantly limited, with many routes not running at all.

“Services will start much later in the morning. We expect our first trains to be very busy, so, if you can, please travel later in the day. Trains will also finish as early as 4.30pm, so plan ahead if you absolutely have to travel.

“We urge the unions to work with the industry and come to a resolution.”

ends

Notes to editors

Information about the service and further FAQs available online at www.gatwickexpress.com, www.greatnorthernrail.com, www.southernrailway.com and www.thameslinkrailway.com.

Alternative travel
With the exception of routes where there is pre-planned engineering work, GTR will be unable to provide alternatives such as replacement buses and ticket acceptance with other local rail and bus operators. This is because industrial action is affecting the whole country and it is not possible to resource the service.

Tickets, refunds and compensation
Passengers with advance, off-peak or anytime tickets affected by the strike on 8 October can use their ticket on the day before the booked date, or up to and including 11 October. Passengers can also change their tickets to travel on an alternate date or get a refund if their train is cancelled or rescheduled.

Passengers with a season ticket or who have a day’s worth of travel activated on a flexi season ticket who choose not to travel on 8 October, can claim compensation for this day through the Delay Repay scheme. Weekly season ticket holders can also claim through Delay Repay if their train is delayed or cancelled on the day, or a ‘Do Not Travel’ warning is in place.

Further information is on the National Rail website.