More strikes are coming to the nation’s capital as ongoing disputes over pay and working conditions continue to grip many industries.
Staff working on the London Underground are set to walk out tomorrow (March 15, 2023).
Over 10,000 members of the National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers (RMT) are due to take part in the industrial action, which is expected to shut down the tube service.
Additionally, members of the Associated Society of Locomotive Engineers and Firemen (ASLEF) will also be taking to the picket lines.
TfL has warned that ‘little or no service is expected on the Tube network.’
As such, will the Elizabeth Line be running during the strike?
Here is what you need to know.
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Will the Elizabeth Line still run during the tube strike?
Services on the Elizabeth Line will be running on March 15.
However, TfL has warned that services will be much busier than usual, and queues are to be expected.
Their website also states: ‘No service expected between Paddington and Abbey Wood/Stratford before 07:30 or after 22:30.’
‘Closure of Tube stations may mean some services will be unable to stop at all stations or run to their normal destination.’
Glynn Barton, TfL’s Chief Operating Officer, said: ‘ASLEF and the RMT are planning strike action on the London Underground on Wednesday 15 March. Strikes are bad news for everyone and we are encouraging them to withdraw this action and continue to engage with us to avoid disruption to our customers.
‘Our advice for our customers is clear; please check before you travel as strike action impacts varying services throughout the week. Expect services to be busy and please allow extra time to complete your journeys.’
More details are available on the TfL website.
Why are the tube workers striking?
Tube workers are taking industrial action over the London Underground funding structure, job losses, conditions, and pension arrangements.
RMT general secretary Mick Lynch recently published an open letter to the mayor of London, Sadiq Khan.
It concluded by saying: ‘As you are aware RMT is campaigning for the restoration of TfL operational funding. No other comparable city to London seeks to run its public transport system without an operational subsidy and the folly of attempting to do so has been cruelly exposed by the demand shocks of the pandemic.
‘TfL’s need for emergency funding from government has led to dependence on striking deals with a spiteful administration with an agenda to drive down the living standards of transport workers. I’m sure you will agree that there is no sustainable future for TfL on this basis.
‘In advance of our strike action on these disputes in November 2022, my union made the offer to London Underground management to suspend our strike action in return for a moratorium on job cuts and changes to agreements on working conditions and an assurance that attacks on our pensions would cease.
‘This offer was refused outright by London Underground management.”
Finally, the letter stated that the mayor should ‘change course and reverse the managed decline of London Underground. Join with RMT in campaigning for the funding that TfL needs to maintain the jobs, pensions and conditions of its workforce and the services it provides to the travelling public of London.”
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