Trains will run from Salisbury on strike days

Friday, 10 March 2023 00:00

SOUTH Western Railway (SWR) is urging customers to only travel if absolutely necessary on Thursday, 16, and Saturday, 18 March, due to planned RMT industrial action.

While Network Rail strike action has been called off, strike action by SWR (and other train operators) RMT members will still occur, severely reducing the number of services SWR can operate.

With 40% of the workforce eligible to strike, including guards, dispatchers and depot shunters, SWR’s contingency managers can only cover a limited number of services between 0700 and 1830 on both Thursday, 16 and Saturday, 18 March. On Friday 17 services will also start later than usual, at around 0700.

Long-planned engineering work on Saturday 18 will mean that the usual strike day route between London Waterloo and Windsor & Eton Riverside will be unavailable, with trains terminating at Hounslow instead.

The mainline between London Waterloo and Southampton Central will also be affected, with no trains between Woking and Basingstoke. Rail replacement bus services will not run on either route.

On Thursday, 16 March, the following services will run between 0700 and 1830:

Two trains per hour in each direction between London Waterloo and Southampton Central
Four trains per hour in each direction between London Waterloo and Woking
Two trains per hour in each direction between London Waterloo and Basingstoke
Four trains per hour in each direction between London Waterloo and Windsor & Eton Riverside
One train per hour in each direction between Guildford and Woking*
One train per hour in each direction between Salisbury and Basingstoke**

On Friday, 17 March, services will start later than usual, with customers asked to check before travelling.

On Saturday, 18 March, the following services will run between 0700 and 1830:

Two trains per hour in each direction between London Waterloo and Hounslow
Four trains per hour in each direction between London Waterloo and Woking
One train per hour in each direction between Basingstoke and Southampton Central
One train per hour in each direction between Woking and Guildford*
One train per hour in each direction between Basingstoke and Salisbury**

Journey planners for Saturday, 18 March, will be up to date on Tuesday, 14 March.

Trains will not stop at all the stations on strike days. Normal service will operate on the Island Line. On Sunday, 19 March, a regular Sunday timetable will operate.

Check www.southwesternrailway.com/strike for all strike information.

South Western Railway’s Chief Operating Officer, Stuart Meek, said:  “I’m afraid I have to once again urge our customers to only travel if absolutely necessary on Thursday 16 and Saturday 18 March, and if you do have to travel, please check your entire journey as long-planned engineering works will affect services on the Saturday.

“While we are pleased to be able to provide additional services for Guildford and Salisbury during this round of strikes, we’re sorry that large parts of our network will still be closed. Our contingency managers are stepping in to provide the best service we can, and we thank our customers for their ongoing patience during these latest RMT strikes.”

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