CrossCountry rail customers urged to plan ahead of industrial action in December

CrossCountry train customers are being warned of rail disruption due to planned industrial action by the ASLEF union between Friday 1 and Saturday 9 December.

A nine-day overtime ban for CrossCountry drivers belonging to the ASLEF union may mean short-notice changes or cancellations to train services during this period.

On Saturday 2nd December, strike action by other train operators is likely to lead to significantly busier CrossCountry services between Birmingham and Edinburgh via Sheffield and between Birmingham and Cambridge via Leicester, including via Melton Mowbray.

Similarly, there are planned strikes on Sunday 3 December affecting Avanti West Coast, Chiltern Railways, London Northwestern and West Midlands Trains.

As a result, CrossCountry services between Manchester and Reading via the West Midlands are likely to be very busy. Planned engineering work will also impact services between Edinburgh and Sheffield.

Customers are being advised to only travel if essential and leave more time for their journey. Services on Sunday 3 December are expected to be significantly busier than usual and queueing systems may be in place for customers at some stations.

CrossCountry customers urged to plan ahead of industrial action in December. Photo: NEMM File Photo

On Thursday 7 December, no CrossCountry services will operate during a one-day strike by the ASLEF union.

Mark Goodall, CrossCountry's Service Delivery Director said: "We’re sorry to customers impacted by this latest round of industrial action. While we’re working hard to run as many services as possible over these days, there is likely to be significant disruption for people planning to travel – especially on Sunday 3 December.

“I’d ask customers to check their whole journey before setting off, especially if travelling later in the day. Customers can visit the CrossCountry website or National Rail Enquiries for the latest travel information.”

Full details of service levels on strike days are available to view at www.crosscountrytrains.co.uk/travel-updates-information/changes-to-train-times/industrial-action

Delay repay, refund and ticket acceptance information are available at the same link.