There is likely to be no service on the London Underground (LU) network on Thursday 3 March due to planned RMT strike action. Transport for London (TfL) is urging customers whose journeys rely on the Tube to work from home if they can, consider alternative modes of transport and leave extra time for essential journeys.
While customers should prepare for no service throughout the day on Thursday, if any service is provided it will not continue into the evening and all journeys will need to be completed by 18:30. The planned action is also likely to severely impact services on Friday 4 March, with no service until at least 08:00 and a severely disrupted service after this. Customers are advised to avoid travelling in the early morning on Friday, check before they travel and aim to make journeys from mid-morning.
This action is part of a dispute over pensions, jobs and conditions but comes despite the fact no proposals have been tabled on pensions or terms and conditions, and nobody has lost or will lose their jobs because of the proposals TfL has set out. TfL has met the RMT three times in the last two weeks, but no progress was made on avoiding the strike action.
Last week, weekday ridership on the Tube hit two-thirds of pre-pandemic levels for the first time, with ridership on Saturday at 85 per cent of pre-pandemic levels and rising as high as 90 per cent at certain times. This week’s strike action will hamper the encouraging progress made to restore ridership, which is vital for TfL’s finances and the city’s recovery from the pandemic.
TfL will do all it can to provide as many transport options as possible during the strike action, just as it did earlier this week, with enhanced bus services running where possible and additional staffed Santander Cycles hubs to guarantee customers can hire and dock bikes. More customers used Santander Cycles on Tuesday than on any other day this year, and the service remains available for those who wish to use active travel to complete their journeys.
Other TfL services, including buses, DLR, Trams, London Overground and TfL Rail are not affected by the strike action and will be running, but customers are advised to check before they travel, expect busier than normal services and for some stations served by London Overground to open later than normal.
TfL expects London’s roads to be congested. Customers in central London are advised to walk, cycle or use a rental e-scooter for all or part of their journeys where possible if the planned action goes ahead.
Andy Lord, TfL’s Chief Operating Officer, said:
“I would ask anyone who needs to use the Tube on Thursday 3 March to check before they make their journey, consider whether they are able to work from home and use alternative modes of transport where possible. It’s highly unlikely there will be an Underground service running during the strike action and, if any service is provided, it will not continue into the evening. Services will also be severely impacted until mid-morning on Friday 4 March because of a number of factors including the placement of drivers and trains following a day without service. I apologise to customers for this and understand they will be frustrated by this strike action, but urge them not to take it out on those who are trying to help.
“We haven’t proposed any changes to pensions or terms and conditions, and nobody has lost or will lose their jobs because of the proposals we have set out, so this action is completely unnecessary. We know our customers deserve better than this continued disruption and that is why we’re urging the RMT to talk to us so we can find a resolution to this dispute which has already damaged London’s recovery from the pandemic.”
Further information is available ahead of, and during, the strike at tfl.gov.uk/tube-strike as well as on the TfL Go app and Journey Planner.
TfL strongly encourages customers to wear face coverings on its services to drive down transmission of the virus and keep each other as safe as possible.
The strike action has been called despite assurances from TfL that nobody will lose their jobs because of proposals, and fewer than 50 per cent of RMT members voting in favour of industrial action. The RMT is being encouraged to work with TfL rather than disrupting London’s recovery in response to no job losses and no proposals on pensions or terms and conditions.