Three days of rail strikes to hit key route into London during Olympics
Three days of rail strikes to hit key route into London during Olympics
Union barons today ordered three days of rail strikes during the middle of the Olympics on a key main line connecting the Midlands to London.
Train drivers wil walk out on the Monday 6, Tuesday 7, and Wednesday 8 August, crippling East Midlands Trains services into Euston.
Thousands of Olympic ticket holders hoping to see some of the biggest stars of track and field now face heartbreak when they are stranded outside the capital.
Jamaican sprint superstar Usain Bolt and British gold medal hope triple jumper Phillips Idowu are among the big names competing during the three days of strikes.
Aslef, the train drivers union which has ordered the strikes in a long running dispute over pensions, was immediate accused of kicking the UK “in the teeth.”
David Horne, Managing Director of East Midlands Trains, said: “This is yet another example of ASLEF playing games and is a real kick in the teeth for our customers and the country.
“The fact is that there was only one point of clarification still under discussion with the union on the pension proposal we put forward back in June. We were in talks with ASLEF to deal with this issue when we heard the news that further strike action dates had been announced.
“We’re particularly surprised that ASLEF has announced further strike dates, rather than putting the offer that was accepted in principle back in June to their members for consideration.
“We’re certain that the public will be shocked and angry to hear that the union has announced strike action during a time of great national pride for our country.
"We hope ASLEF can see sense and call off this unnecessary strike action.”
He promised that if the strikes went ahead the Stagecoach-owned operator would “pull out all the stops” to ensure it ran as many trains as possible.
All three main lines, including the West and East coats routes, will be very busy during the Games.
The dispute has already led to previous walkouts.
The company insists the proposed changes to the pension scheme will result in higher take-home pay and additional pensions benefits.
Mick Whelan, the Aslef leader, denies this is the case. He defended the strikes and accused the company of cost cutting.
He said: “To cut pensions in the current climate is highly irresponsible.
“It is widely believed that the (pension) funds assets have dramatically decreased since the last valuation.
“The current owners of the East Midlands Trains franchise may have no responsibility over the pension fund in a few years, whereas our members face the prospect of either cripplingly high rates or reduced benefits due to a short-term cost-cutting decision made by EMT that has left the scheme in deficit.”
News of the strikes came as signal failures today crippled Tube and mainline rail services today increasing transport fears for the Olympics.
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