London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Friday, Sep 18, 2026

Train passengers told to check before travelling on Monday

Train passengers told to check before travelling on Monday

Rail passengers are being urged to check whether their trains are running on Monday as the majority of rail operators run reduced services.

Only a handful of train companies will run a normal timetable, despite strikes over pay and conditions being called off on Friday.

The strikes, planned for 5, 7 and 9 November, had been called in a dispute over pay and conditions.

Some services on Wednesday are also likely to be disrupted.

Although the strikes are not going ahead, rosters for train drivers are normally put in place and agreed a week in advance.

The Rail Delivery Group, which represents the train companies, said that the "short notice" cancellation of the strikes means that "train driver availability will inevitably be very challenging and rely primarily on volunteers".

Nevertheless, some of the 14 train companies that were due to be affected by the strikes are running a normal service on Monday, including C2C and Greater Anglia.

However, the majority are not, with some saying the disruption will also affect services on Wednesday.

Great Western Railway (GWR) said it was working hard to reinstate services into next week but improvements to Monday's timetable were "unlikely" given "the late notice".

More information about Wednesday would be released "early next week", it added.

Network Rail warned passengers that there would be "limited ability to change the strike timetable for Monday".

Meanwhile, West Midlands Railway said a reduced service would be in operation on Monday while work was ongoing to establish the "level of service" it could run on Wednesday.

South Eastern Railway's services will start later and finish earlier than usual on Monday and there will be no service on the Medway Valley or Sheerness lines.

South Western Railway said it was too late to reinstate a full service on Monday and its trains are expected to run only between 07:00 GMT an 19:00 GMT.

However, it confirmed that full services would run on Wednesday and Thursday.

Train companies are advising customers to check services before they travel, and make additional checks on the day.

Negotiations


The RMT union said on Friday it had called off the strikes after "the promise of an offer" on pay from the rail operating companies, and said it would enter "intensive negotiations" with the firms and Network Rail.

Steve Montgomery, chair of the Rail Delivery Group, said on Friday that the train companies were "working up to" making an offer to the trade unions.

However, rail employers and the government also said their position had not changed.

The suspension of the strikes is significant, as it is the first time in the RMT's long-running dispute that a strike has been called off to make further talks easier.

New rail minister Huw Merriman said on Friday that the government wanted to "work positively and constructively" to find a solution to the ongoing rail disputes.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
TUC Calls for Social Energy Tariff Funded by Higher Taxes on Bank Profits
UK Parliament Enters Conference Recess After Advancing Sovereign Grant Legislation
King Charles Hosts Artificial Intelligence Leaders at Dumfries House Summit
Nearly Seven in Ten UK Small Businesses Delay or Cancel Growth Plans as Costs Rise
Anthropic Details Malicious Use of Claude in Cyber, Weapons and Influence Operations
McLaren Announces £500 Million UK Investment and 1,000 New Jobs
Scotland and Wales Sign Cardiff Agreement to Deepen Cooperation on Shared Policy Priorities
UK Government Moves to Fully Fund Teacher Pay Award as Strike Threat Recedes
UK Competition Regulator Deepens Scrutiny of Microsoft’s Business Software and AI Market Position
NHS England Reforms Focus on Cutting Waiting Lists and Improving Digital Care
England Maintains Mandatory Housing Targets in Push for 1.5 Million New Homes
UK Government Plans Statutory Industrial Strategy Council to Strengthen Long-Term Economic Policy
Asthma Charity Warns of Major Gaps in Childhood Diagnostic Testing Across England
TUC Chief Paul Nowak Appointed to Bank of England Court
Bristol Opens £35 Million Deep-Tech Innovation Hub at Temple Quarter
Oxfordshire Village Votes Symbolically to Leave UK Over Asylum Housing Plan
Andy Burnham Deepens UK Defense and AI Cooperation With NATO and Canada
UK Government Announces Neonatal Safety Reforms After Thirlwall Inquiry
Bank of England Weighs Rate Decision as UK Inflation Rises to 3.1%
UK Health Unions Warn of Staffing Pressures as Public and Private Pay Growth Diverges
Rockstar Games Faces Tribunal Claims From 23 Former Grand Theft Auto VI Developers
UK Treasury Faces Tighter Budget Constraints as Borrowing Costs and Pension Spending Rise
Prime Minister Andy Burnham Sets Out Ten-Year Plan for Greater Public Oversight of Utilities
UK Economy Grows 0.4% in July as Services and Technology Activity Strengthen
Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland Leaders Coordinate Push for UK Constitutional Change
Police Tighten Public-Order Measures After Anti-Immigration Protests in Dover and Portsmouth
UK Ministers Pressed for Answers After US Diplomat Accused of Child Abuse Images Leaves Britain
Jaguar Land Rover Pursues NATO Defense Contracts for Defender Vehicles
British Service Member Dies in Road Accident While Deployed in Ukraine
George Osborne Calls for Britain to Rejoin EU Customs Union
Anthropic Chief Dario Amodei Urges Faster UK Action on Advanced AI Risks
UK State Pension Set for 3.9% Rise Under Triple Lock
UK Labour Market Cools as Payrolled Employment Continues to Decline
Reform UK’s £72 Million in Donations Faces Scrutiny Under Proposed Retrospective Funding Rules
UK Doctors Warn Expanded Pharmacy First Scheme Could Put Patients at Risk
British Airlines Cut Short-Haul Capacity as Jet Fuel Costs Rise
UK News Publishers Forecast 40% Search Traffic Drop as AI Overviews Expand
Axel Springer Wins Approval for £575 Million Daily Telegraph Acquisition
London Mayor Sadiq Khan Opposes Heathrow Third Runway Over Climate Targets
Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland Leaders Hold Summit Seeking Greater Autonomy
UK Energy Price Cap Set to Rise to £1,723 in October
UK Treasury Warns Middle East Conflict Is Threatening Economic Growth
Labour Moves to Retrospectively Cap Overseas Political Donations After Reform UK Funding Surge
HMRC Warns Nearly Seven Million Adults Are Unclear About State Pension Entitlements
UK Parliament Passes Sovereign Grant Reform Before Conference Recess
British Rail Passengers Gain Automatic Right to Switch Operators During Disruptions
Burnham Hosts Downing Street Business Summit as UK Fiscal Pressure Builds
Labour Government Moves to Challenge £72 Million in Reform UK Crypto Donations
UK Advertising Industry Warns Wider Junk Food Rules Could Put £1 Billion in Media Spending at Risk
Cornwall Opens Devolution Talks With UK Government Over Transport and Local Services
×