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Here we go again, more tube strikes. If
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you were worried that your morning
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commute was feeling a little bit too
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smooth, the RMT union has you covered.
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The union has announced six 24-hour
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walkouts across the TfL network,
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spanning all the way from the end of
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March into May. All in all, the strikes
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will impact service on 12 different
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days. So, mark your calendars. You are
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unlikely to enjoy the 24th and 26th of
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March, the 21st and 23rd of April, and
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the 19th and 21st of May. These strikes
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will be starting at noon on Tuesdays and
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Thursdays, which mean that both the
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evening rush hour and the morning's
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commute the next day will be absolute
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chaos. So, what's the dispute actually
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about? Well, it's not about pay this
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time. It's about a proposed four-day
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working week. Transport for London wants
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to condense driver hours to improve
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efficiency. And while the ASLEF union
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actually welcomed the move as a huge
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improvement in conditions, the RMT have
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not. The RMT is pushing back hard. They
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argue that longer shifts will lead to
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extreme fatigue, risking both driver
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health and passenger safety. The fallout
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for London's economy is expected to be
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savage. Business leaders are sounding
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the alarm, especially for the
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hospitality and retail sectors that rely
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on foot traffic in the city. We're
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talking about major disruptions to big
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events, too, such as the Women's
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Champions League clash at the Emirates.
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And with nearly half of all tube drivers
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represented by the RMT, expect a ghost
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town underground and packed buses on the
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surface. TfL insists that the four-day
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week is a fair proposal and currently is
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trialing it on the Bakerloo line. This
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is not a great look for Sadiq Khan, who
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once pledged zero tube strikes under his
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mayoralty. Since then, commuters have
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been hit by pretty regular tube strikes
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throughout 2022, then a handful across
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'23 and four, and then another full week
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just last September. As it stands, the
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RMT say they have no choice but to walk
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out after months of failed negotiations.
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So, unless a last-minute deal is struck,
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Londoners are looking at a very
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difficult spring on the tracks. What do
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you think? Is this latest dispute worth
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yet more disruption to commuters and
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businesses? Let us know in the comments.
