Sussex rail services crippled by latest strikes by RMT union

Train companies are urging people to only travel if absolutely necessary, as routes across Sussex are paralysed by the industrial action.

RMT members will strike today and tomorrow, as well as on January 6 and January 7, with only services along the London to Brighton route, as well as between Brighton and Hove, in operation.

However, all services across the county will be suspended on Thursday as a one-day strike by the union ASLEF, which represents 96 per cent of train drivers in Great Britain.

Trains that are in operation over the next few days will start later in the day and finish earlier, with services expected to be extremely busy.

First trains from Brighton today

• 07.15 - to London Victoria
• 07.24 - to London Bridge
• 07.39 - to Hove

Last trains from Brighton today

• 16.54 - to London Bridge
• 17.40 - to London Victoria
• 18.09 - to Hove

Angie Doll, chief operating officer at Govia Thameslink Railway - which operates Southern, Thameslink and Gatwick Expres services, apologised to customers who will be affected by this week’s strike action.

She said: “Regrettably, due to industrial action, our train services will be extremely limited in the first week of January with no trains at all on Thursday, January 5.

“Please plan ahead and, if services are running, travel only if absolutely necessary.”

Passengers with tickets over the next five days are able to use their tickets up to and including January 10 as a result of the disruption.

RMT strikes take place today, tomorrow, Friday and Saturday

Daniel Mann, director of industry operations at the Rail Delivery Group, said: “No one wants to see these strikes go ahead, and we can only apologise to passengers and to the many businesses who will be hit by this unnecessary and damaging disruption.

“We would advise passengers to only travel if it is absolutely necessary during this period, allow extra time and check when their first and last train will depart.”

General secretary of the RMT Mick Lynch said that strikes will continue until the government stops “blocking” a deal to resolve the dispute.

He said: We have worked with the rail industry to reach successful negotiated settlements ever since privatisation in 1993 and we have achieved deals across the network in 2021 and 2022 where the Department for Transport has no involvement.

“Yet in this dispute, there is an unprecedented level of ministerial interference, which is hamstringing rail employers from being able to negotiate a package of measures with us, so we can settle this dispute.

“We will continue our industrial action campaign while we work towards a negotiated resolution.”

• READ MORE: Warning to drivers as strikes set to hit highways causing delays

The government has denied claims by unions that it is now the main stumbling block to ending the bitter dispute.

A spokeswoman for the Department for Transport said: “Passengers have rightly had enough of rail strikes and want the disruption to end.

“The government has demonstrated it is being reasonable and stands ready to facilitate a resolution to rail disputes. It is time the unions came to the table and played their part as well.

“Inflation-matching pay increases for all public-sector workers would cost everyone more in the long-term, worsening debt, fuelling inflation, and costing every household an extra £1,000.

“Unions should step back from this strike action so we can start 2023 by ending this damaging dispute.”