Train passengers face significant disruption over the bank holiday weekend as a strike by Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT) members at East Midlands Railway (EMR) will hit services on Sunday and bank holiday Monday. The company said it will run a “significantly reduced” timetable to and from London on both days, advising passengers to only travel if their journey is essential on these dates and to check before setting out.
Reduced Services and Busy Stations
Compounding the disruption is that this Sunday there will be no LNER trains between London King’s Cross and Peterborough as part of digital signalling upgrades being carried out by Network Rail. As a result, EMR services to and from London St Pancras are expected to be extremely busy, with increased demand coinciding with a reduced service because of the strike action.
Sheffield station and Nottingham station will also be very busy and queues to board services will be in place. The RMT has voiced concerns about safety issues and faults on some trains. EMR said it continues to have “constructive discussions” with the RMT and has met with the union six times as it works towards resolving the issues.
Advice for Passengers
Philippa Cresswell, customer experience director at EMR, said: “We recognise how frustrating this disruption will be for customers, particularly following the three Saturdays affected by RMT strike action earlier this month, and we are very sorry for the impact this will have on August bank holiday plans.
“We continue to have constructive discussions with the RMT and have met with the union six times as we work towards resolving the issues at the heart of this dispute.
“We strongly advise customers to only travel to or from London if their journey is essential on Sunday 30 and Monday August 31, and to check their full journey, including first and last trains, before setting out.”
Full List of Stations Affected
- King’s Cross
- Stevenage
- Peterborough
- London St Pancras
- Nottingham
- Long Eaton
- Derby
- Belper
- Chesterfield
- Sheffield
