TfL criticises industrial action

A statement reads: “TfL will do all it can to provide as many transport options as possible, but customers are advised to check before they travel, consider if their travel is essential and work from home if possible.

“They should leave more time for journeys and travel at quieter times where possible.”

Walk & cycle all or part of your journey where possible

• Walk and cycle all or part of your journey where possible
• Much of Zone 1 is walkable
• You are never more than 600m from a Santander Cycle hire point in central London
• There are electric scooter rental trials in some London Boroughs

What to do to avoid getting caught out

• If you can, consider working from home on strike days (Tue 1 and Thu 3 March)
• If you can, travel later in the day on the days after strikes (Wed 2 and Fri 4 March)
• Allow more time for your journey if you need to travel between 1 and 4 March

London Mayor had to rely on Westminster bail outs

Mr Khan, 51, who is also the chairman of TfL, had to rely on a number of bailouts from Westminster to prevent London Underground and the capital’s buses from grinding to a halt.

That money though came with a number of strings attached, such as a pledge to look at the introduction of driverless Tube trains.

After the Department for Transport snubbed requests for TfL to keep its share of vehicle excise duty, or “road tax,” Mr Khan proposed introducing a £2 “clear air charge” for drivers in the capital.

Also being considered is a so-called boundary charge of up to £5.50 a day levied on motorists entering Greater London.

Transport for London warns of disruption during 24 hour strike

Andy Lord, TfL’s chief operating officer, warned of disruption.

He said: “TfL haven’t proposed any changes to pensions or terms and conditions, and nobody has or will lose their jobs because of the proposals we have set out.

“I hope the RMT will get around the table with us, continue talks and call off this disruptive action, which will cause huge frustration for our customers and further financial damage to TfL and London’s economy when we should be working together to rebuild following the pandemic.”

Strikes on Tuesday & Thursday to go ahead

Severe service interruptions are expected on Tuesday and Thursday when members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT) walk out.

Transport for London (TfL) said it expects severe disruption across all Tube lines tomorrow and Thursday.

The planned action is also likely to severely affect services on Wednesday and Friday, particularly in the morning peak.

Sadiq Khan ‘considering shutting tube network for days at a time’

Workers have been told not to come into work on Tuesday, March 1 and Thursday, March 3.

According to the Evening Standard, the decision to strike is over plans to axe up to 600 jobs posts in a bid to save cash.

Transport for London (TfL) is thought to be in a blackhole of £15 billion with London Mayor Sadiq Khan said to be “considering shutting London’s tube network for days at a time”.

History of the night tube

The first lines to take on the 24-hour service were the Central and Victoria lines on August 19, 2016.

Central line services run between Ealing Broadway and Loughton/Hainault while the entire Victoria line stays open.

Services were then launched on the Northern line and the Piccadilly line joined the network.

And in July, 2017, it was announced the London Overground, also referred to as the Orange Line, will operate all night on Friday and Saturdays between New Cross Gate and Dalston Junction – with the service to then be extended to Highbury & Islington in 2018.

The Northern line ran a 24-hour from Morden via Camden Town and on to Edgeware/High Barnet with no service on the Bank or Mill Hill East branches.

Piccadilly line ran between Cockfosters and Heathrow Terminal 5 with no services on the Terminal 4 loop or between Uxbridge and Acton Town.

TfL’s finances dealt a severe blow during pandemic

TfL’s finances were dealt a severe blow by the drastic fall in revenue raised by fares during the pandemic.

Critics of the Mayor of London have also claimed that his pledge in 2016 not to raise fares has contributed to the situation.

Mr Khan, 51, who is also the chairman of TfL, had to rely on a number of bailouts from Westminster to prevent London Underground and the capital’s buses from grinding to a halt.

Huge rises on rail season tickets

A 3.8% rise on rail fares would lead to hikes in the cost of annual season tickets, such as:

• Brighton to London (any route): Up £194 to £5,302
• Liverpool to Manchester (any route): Up £105 to £2,865
• Neath to Cardiff: Up £70 to £1,922

What is the night tube?

The night tube is the metro in London that runs throughout the night on certain days and lines.

Former Mayor Boris Johnson’s brain child was held back by a year as the Rail, Maritime and Transport Union (RMT) clashed with TfL over pay and conditions.

But the project took off in 2016 and after a staggered start all five proposed lines are running all-night services for Londoners on the weekends with the London Overground now set to join them.

TfL call for RMT to call off industrial action

The announcement of strike action comes just three days after the Government agreed to continue its bailout for TfL while a deal is worked out to secure its long-term funding.

Andy Lord, TfL’s chief operating officer, warned of disruption.

He said: “TfL haven’t proposed any changes to pensions or terms and conditions, and nobody has or will lose their jobs because of the proposals we have set out.

“I hope the RMT will get around the table with us, continue talks and call off this disruptive action, which will cause huge frustration for our customers and further financial damage to TfL and London’s economy when we should be working together to rebuild following the pandemic.”

RMT defends strike action

RMT general secretary Mick Lynch said: “Our members will be taking strike action because a financial crisis at LU (London Underground) has been deliberately engineered by the Government to drive a cuts agenda which would savage jobs, services, safety and threaten their working conditions and pensions.

“These are the very same transport staff praised as heroes for carrying London through Covid for nearly two years, often at serious personal risk, who now have no option but to strike to defend their livelihoods.

“The politicians need to wake up to the fact that transport staff will not pay the price for this cynically engineered crisis.

“In addition to the strike action, RMT is co-ordinating a campaign of resistance with colleagues from other unions impacted by this threat.”

What is the night tube?

The night tube is the metro in London that runs throughout the night on certain days and lines.

Former Mayor Boris Johnson’s brain child was held back by a year as the Rail, Maritime and Transport Union (RMT) clashed with TfL over pay and conditions.

But the project took off in 2016 and after a staggered start all five proposed lines are running all-night services for Londoners on the weekends with the London Overground now set to join them.

Government accused of ‘strangling the life’ out of TfL

The Government has been accused of “strangling the life” out of Transport for London (TfL) despite announcing a new £200 million funding deal.

The announcement is the fourth funding settlement of the pandemic and takes Government support close to £5 billion.

The Government said the settlement, which runs until June 24, includes conditions to put TfL on track to financial sustainability by 2023 and the potential for a longer-term capital settlement “dependent on the mayor and TfL’s co-operation”.

But union leaders and opposition politicians criticised the move, made ahead of strikes next week by London Underground workers worried about their jobs, pay, pensions and working conditions.

Manuel Cortes, Transport Salaried Staffs’ Association general secretary, said: “The funding arrangement shows how the Government’s micromanagement of TfL is strangling the life out of it.

“TfL can’t make plans and is in a position of stagnation and decline under the Government’s oppressive approach.

“The Tory Government continues to fail to grasp the importance of transport to our economy and to all of our communities. The complete lack of capital funding from today’s deal will continue to hit TfL’s supply chains which sustain jobs across Britain.”

Tfl: We know our customers deserve better

Andy Lord, TfL’s chief operating officer, said: “I would ask anyone who needs to use the Tube on March 1 and 3 to check before they make their journey, consider whether they are able to work from home and use alternative modes of transport where possible.

“It’s highly unlikely there will be an Underground service running during the strike action and services are likely to be affected on the mornings of March 2 and 4 too.

“I apologise to customers for this and understand they will be frustrated by this strike action, but urge them not to take it out on those who are trying to help.

“We haven’t proposed any changes to pensions or terms and conditions, and nobody has or will lose their jobs because of the proposals we have set out, so this action is completely unnecessary.

“We know our customers deserve better than this and that is why we’re urging the RMT to talk to us so we can find a resolution to this dispute and call off this action, which is threatening London’s recovery from the pandemic.”

Huge rises on rail season tickets

A 3.8% rise on rail fares would lead to hikes in the cost of annual season tickets, such as:

• Brighton to London (any route): Up £194 to £5,302
• Liverpool to Manchester (any route): Up £105 to £2,865
• Neath to Cardiff: Up £70 to £1,922

RMT defends strike action

RMT general secretary Mick Lynch said: “Our members will be taking strike action because a financial crisis at LU (London Underground) has been deliberately engineered by the Government to drive a cuts agenda which would savage jobs, services, safety and threaten their working conditions and pensions.

“These are the very same transport staff praised as heroes for carrying London through Covid for nearly two years, often at serious personal risk, who now have no option but to strike to defend their livelihoods.

“The politicians need to wake up to the fact that transport staff will not pay the price for this cynically engineered crisis.

“In addition to the strike action, RMT is co-ordinating a campaign of resistance with colleagues from other unions impacted by this threat.”

How many people were killed during Storm Eunice?

Four people died after killer Storm Eunice smashed the British Isles with 122mph gales on February 19.

A woman in her 30s, who was a passenger in a car, died in Haringey, North London, when a tree fell onto the vehicle.

A man in his 30s, who was behind the wheel, was taken to hospital. His injuries are not thought to be life-threatening.

In Hampshire, 23-year-old dad Jack Bristow was killed and a second man seriously injured when a 10-foot tree fell in market town Alton.

A man in his 50s died when debris smashed through the windscreen of a car in Merseyside.

Statement from the Mayor’s office

A spokeswoman for Mr Khan said: “The upcoming strike action will cause disruption to Londoners and businesses that are trying to recover from two devastating years.

“It will also damage TfL’s revenues at a time when TfL is already under huge financial strain due to the pandemic.

“TfL are working to mitigate the impact of the strikes but disruption is inevitable.

“The mayor urges Londoners who need to travel on March 1 and 3 to check before they make their journey, consider whether they are able to work from home and use alternative modes of transport where possible.

“Sadiq doesn’t want to see strike action and is imploring the unions to come to the table and work with City Hall and TfL.”

Sadiq’s rivals at City Hall claim he has ‘worst strike record’

Transport spokesman for the GLA Conservatives, Keith Princs told the Evening Standard: “If the Mayor claims that he has a good strike record he’s delusional.

“He has the worst record of any London mayor and almost as many incidents of strike action than the two previous mayors combined. I think it’s time he admitted to himself that he’s failing London.

“This is a catastrophic week for London’s commuters, the network will take time to reset after each strike and will then have to reckon with further strikes on Friday and Saturday evening.”

Will other London transport networks still be running?

London Overground – along with TfL Rail, the DLR, London Trams and National Rail – will be running on the strike dates.

But TfL says: “Services will be running normally but will be busier than usual. Allow more time for your journey and consider alternatives.

“If you are using services from stations also served by the Tube, check before you travel for possible station closures.”

Current TfL funding deal comes to an end in June

The Government announced a new funding deal for TfL last week, which will run until the end of June.  

The announcement of strike action came just three days after the Government agreed to continue its bailout for TfL while a deal is worked out to secure its long-term funding.

Severe disruption expected across all tube lines

Transport for London (TfL) said it expects severe disruption across all Tube lines tomorrow and Thursday.

The planned action is also likely to severely affect services on Wednesday and Friday, particularly in the morning peak.

TfL has criticised the industrial action, saying there are no proposals on pensions or terms and conditions, and nobody has or will lose their jobs because of the proposals it has set out.

RMT defends strike action

RMT general secretary Mick Lynch said: “Our members will be taking strike action because a financial crisis at LU (London Underground) has been deliberately engineered by the Government to drive a cuts agenda which would savage jobs, services, safety and threaten their working conditions and pensions.

“These are the very same transport staff praised as heroes for carrying London through Covid for nearly two years, often at serious personal risk, who now have no option but to strike to defend their livelihoods.

“The politicians need to wake up to the fact that transport staff will not pay the price for this cynically engineered crisis.

“In addition to the strike action, RMT is co-ordinating a campaign of resistance with colleagues from other unions impacted by this threat.”