Northern has said passengers should avoid travel during a major strike this month which has been called by members of the RMT union, saying dates in-between the industrial action would be affected as well.
Its warning follows similar words of caution from Southern and TransPennine last week.
Meanwhile TSSA has said it is asking its members working at Network Rail about strike action and action short of a strike.
A warning on the impact of strikes
Northern said that the whole of the network would be affected by the strikes organised by RMT, planned for Tuesday 21, Thursday 23 and Saturday 25 June.
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- More reaction on RMT vote for national strike
The train operator says the timing of the strike action has a knock-on effect on the days in-between with disruption of operations, the displacement of trains across the network and also on shift patterns.
Northern usually runs nearly 2,000 services a day to 540 stations.
The operator is currently working with Network Rail to agree what services it can run, with the priority being on essential routes on mainlines and into major cities.
In accordance with this, Northern is expecting to run a “very limited” timetable and is suggesting customers do not travel on the strike dates and, wherever possible, not to travel on those in-between as well.
It said that customers should seek alternative transport if their journey is essential.
Tricia Williams, chief operating officer at Northern, said: “Our ability to get customers where they want to be will be significantly impacted and our advice, regrettably, is simply not to travel during the week of strike action.
“We apologise in advance for the disruption and inconvenience that the RMT’s industrial action may cause. We continue to be keen to speak to the RMT to find a resolution and avoid any strikes.”
TSSA ballot
Rail union TSSA has served notice to ballot over 6,000 staff at Network Rail for strike action and action short of strike in a dispute over pay, conditions and job security.
The ballot comes as part of the dispute with Network Rail and the wider rail industry, which could result in widespread disruption across Britain’s rail network. TSSA’s members work in operational, control, management and safety critical roles on rail services across Britain.
TSSA says it wants a guarantee of no compulsory redundancies for 2022, no unagreed changes to terms and conditions, and a pay increase which reflects the rising cost of living.
Members are being asked to cast two votes: one on strike action, another on action short of strike. The timetable for the ballot is:
Ballot opens: 20 June 2022
Ballot closes: 11 July 2022
In the event of a yes vote, strike action could take place as early as 25 July 2022
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