East Coast Main Line passengers urged to plan ahead and only travel by train if necessary on Thursday and Saturday

Monday 15 Aug 2022

East Coast Main Line passengers urged to plan ahead and only travel by train if necessary on Thursday and Saturday

Region & Route:: Eastern; | Eastern: East Coast

Rail passengers travelling on the East Coast Main Line are urged to plan ahead this Thursday (18 Aug) and Saturday (20 Aug) as a limited timetable will be available 
Amid national industrial action, less than half of usual services will run between London and Edinburgh from 7:30am until 6:30pm
Passengers should check before they travel, expect disruption and only travel if necessary

Rail passengers travelling on the East Coast Main Line should plan ahead and only travel by train if it’s absolutely necessary this Thursday (18 Aug) and Saturday (20 Aug). With rail unions calling national industrial action, train services will be limited and only run between 7.30am and 6.30pm. 

Thousands of specially-trained and fully qualified back-up staff will step in during the walkout - which has been called by the RMT, TSSA and Unite unions - to keep vital services running for those who need them. But with less than half of usual services planned to run between London and Edinburgh via Peterborough, York and Newcastle, passengers are asked to only travel by train if they must.

Trains are set to start later and finish much earlier than usual, between 7.30am and 6.30pm, with the last long distance services leaving in the early afternoon. Those who really need to travel should allow extra time and check their last train times. 

Sarah Reid, Route Director for Network Rail’s East Coast Route said: “Passengers travelling on the East Coast Main Line will again face a limited train service due to the ongoing industrial action on Thursday and Saturday.

“I’d urge those who absolutely need to travel by train to plan ahead, check their journey and expect severe disruption. I can only apologise for the impact that this will have on people’s plans.” 

Passengers should also expect disruption on the morning of Friday 19 August and Sunday 21 August with a later start to services as railway workers return to their duties.  

Further information for passengers is available on the National Rail website. 

ENDS 

Notes to Editors

All train operators are affected by the 18/20 August strikes (whether they have an ongoing industrial dispute or not) as Network Rail’s signallers control train movements across the entire country. 
Although the network will only be open from 7.30am to 6.30pm on both dates, electricity to tracks and overhead lines will stay on throughout, as will patrolling by security staff, police and from the air.

Passengers with advance, off-peak or anytime tickets affected by the strike on 18 and 20 August can use their ticket either on the day before the date on the ticket, or up to and including Tuesday 23 August. Passengers can also change their tickets to travel on an alternate date or get a refund if their train is cancelled or rescheduled.  
Passengers with a season ticket that is monthly or longer or who have an activated days’ worth of travel on a flexi season ticket who choose not to travel on 18 or 20 August, can claim compensation for these days through the delay repay scheme.  
If passengers need to travel on the 18 or 20 and already have a ticket, please check with the train company you booked to travel with in advance of your journey for advice on what to do.

Contact information

Passengers / community members
Network Rail national helpline
03457 11 41 41

Latest travel advice
Please visit National Rail Enquiries

Journalists
Jake Nabi
Media Relations Manager
Network Rail
07858375508
jake.nabi@networkrail.co.uk

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