Bedford commuters: More misery as train drivers’ union Aslef announce new strikes

Thameslink services will be disrupted in early December due to nationwide industrial action by the train drivers’ union Aslef.

Customers are being advised to check every journey, every day using nationalrail.co.uk, as Gatwick Express, Great Northern, Southern and Thameslink services will run to different timetables for 10 consecutive days. Trains may start later and finish earlier and on some days a small number of stations will have no service at all.

Services will be much busier than usual, especially in the peak hours. There will be some disruption and long queues. Passengers may not be able to board their chosen service and should allow extra time for their journeys.

As well as a nationwide ban on overtime by Aslef between December 1 and 9, there’ll be no Thameslink trains Sunday, December 3.

And on Monday, December 4, trains will restart between 7am and 9am due to the knock-on effect.

On Saturday, December 2, East Midlands Railway and LNER will be affected.

There’ll also be no rail replacement bus services on strike days due to the scale of the action. This includes those previously put in place for engineering work.

The average salary for train drivers was £59,189 in 2021.

Jenny Saunders, customer services director, said: “I strongly urge customers to check every journey, every day, so they aren't caught out.

“No two consecutive days will be the same, so please plan all your journeys carefully, including any connections with other operators.”