Festive commuters are facing disruption as a fresh round of rail strikes threaten to shut down a large part of the network over Christmas.
An ongoing dispute between the RMT union and Network Rail has led to the union rejecting the latest offer from the operator – as strike planned to begin next week prepares to go ahead.
Around 40,000 rail workers are set to go on strike across the UK – including in Scotland – on four strike days set for December 13, 14, 16 and 17 – and these have now been joined by additional days targeting the busy Christmas rush.
The latest plans will now see industrial action commence at 6pm on Christmas Eve, running through to 5.59am on December 27 – with disruption also expected around strike days as the network gets back online.
In its latest release, the RMT said the move was necessary due to the “continuing intransigence” of employers and urged oprators to get back around the table for fresh talks – but stressed strikes “would coincide with the wind down of passenger services and the commencement of engineering works”.
The dispute is a separate one to the one which caused disruption across the Scotrail network earlier this year, but will still have a major effect on services in Scotland due to the lack of Network Rail-employed signallers and maintenance staff who will be on strike.
In addition to the November and Christmas dates, ScotRail have also warned passengers to expect disruption on January 3 and 4 and January 6 and 7 due to strike action taking place on those dates.
