Tuesday will see the largest combined strike in London for 40 years, and serious travel disruption is expected to last the rest of the week.
Underground workers will strike tomorrow alongside the RMT, which will hold further strikes on Thursday and Saturday. The London transport network will likely suffer effects even after tomorrow’s strike, as rolling stock will be in the wrong place, some stations must shut, and also because the Overground shares some track with National Rail.
The industrial action was announced just under a fortnight ago and negotiations to avert it dragged on until the ‘last ditch’ stage today. Boris Johnson told the Standard this morning, “it is not too late for unions to stay at the table and call off these strikes,” to no avail. The strikes are going ahead.
Londoners – and those who travel into the capital – must reconsider their travel options for the week ahead. TfL has published lengthy guidance on where and when to expect disruption to be most severe, including an outright ‘avoid travel if possible’ message for the entirety of Tuesday.
For many, that may be easier said than done. School exams can’t be missed, dropping long-held plans for events such as Glastonbury to watch on TV instead is unlikely to appeal, and working from home isn’t an option for everyone.
It’s going to be painful trying to get around, but some may have no choice but to ride it out.
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