Passengers on CrossCountry services are facing fresh disruption after train drivers announced industrial action in a dispute over what their union describes as “managers acting in bad faith”. The walkout follows a separate strike by RMT members over the August bank holiday weekend that shut the network for a day.
Aslef, which represents 632 CrossCountry drivers, said its members voted by nine to one in favour of strike action on a turnout of 83 per cent. From Sunday 21 September, drivers will refuse to work non-contractual overtime, and a full-scale strike is planned for Friday 3 October, a day when most or all CrossCountry trains are likely to be cancelled.
Mick Whelan, Aslef’s general secretary, said: “We only walk out when we have been pushed too far by a belligerent management. That’s what’s happened here. When we make agreements, we stick by them. This company doesn’t.” Andy Hourigan, the union’s lead officer for CrossCountry, added that the company “constantly breaks agreements, arrangements, and procedures”.
CrossCountry managing director Shiona Rolfe said she was “disappointed for passengers” and that the company remained committed to reaching an agreement. A Department for Transport spokesperson said there was still time to avert disruption and urged both sides to return to talks.
Major stations affected by the dispute include Birmingham New Street, Bristol, Cardiff, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Manchester, Newcastle, Nottingham, Oxford, Plymouth, Reading and York. Aslef is also taking industrial action with Hull Trains over the treatment of a driver.
