South Western Railway published a strike timetable and advised rail users only to travel by rail if it’s absolutely necessary. This is in response to the National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers (RMT) union announcement that strikes will take place on Tuesday 21st, Thursday 23rd and Saturday 25th June 2022. Strikes will also be taking place on most other Train Operating Companies and at Network Rail on these dates. Rail services will be significantly affected between the 21st and 25th June as a result. The routes that will be operating may not stop at all stations.
Matthew Evans (Senior Stakeholder and Public Affairs Manager) from South Wester Railway stated:
“As you will no doubt be aware, the RMT union has announced that strikes will take place on Tuesday 21st, Thursday 23rd and Saturday 25th June 2022. Strikes will also be taking place on most other Train Operating Companies and at Network Rail on these dates.”
“Our clear message to customers is to only travel by rail if absolutely necessary, to seek alternative arrangements if possible, and if they must travel to expect severe disruption.
“We will be updating our website http://www.southwesternrailway.com/strike with the information contained in this press release and updates will be made periodically as needed.”
South Western Railway announces strike timetable
- Due to the planned national strike, SWR customers are urged only to travel by rail if absolutely necessary between 21 and 26 June
- SWR will run a severely reduced timetable on strike days (21, 23, 25 June), with significant parts of the network closed
- A severely limited service will run between 07:15 and 18:30 on some routes for those who have no choice but to travel
- SWR will run a late-starting Sunday level of service across the network on 22, 24 and 26 June
South Western Railway (SWR) is urging customers only to travel by rail if it is absolutely necessary on the planned strike days – Tuesday 21, Thursday 23 and Saturday 25 June – and throughout that week. Customers should expect severe disruption and, if they have to travel, should seek to do so by other means. This comes as SWR published their strike day timetable, which will provide a very limited service on the routes Network Rail have made available. The reduced timetable will see significant parts of the network closed entirely and those trains that are running will be far less frequent compared to normal.
Network Rail and more than 2,100 SWR RMT members are set to take strike action on Tuesday 21, Thursday 23 and Saturday 25 June, causing severe disruption. Network Rail will provide contingency cover for critical roles including electrical control room operators, signallers, maintenance and response teams, but will not be able to cover the whole day.
SWR’s reduced timetable will run from 07:15 to 18:30 on the three strike days, and will consist of:
- Four trains per hour in each direction between Waterloo and Windsor via Hounslow
- Two semi-fast trains per hour in each direction between Waterloo and Basingstoke
- Four trains per hour in each direction between Waterloo and Woking
- Two fast trains per hour in each direction between Waterloo and Southampton
NB – Trains will not stop at all stations on these routes.
Island Line services will not be affected by the industrial action
There will be no SWR services across the rest of the network.
Significant disruption is also expected on Wednesday 22, Friday 24 and Sunday 26 June, when the network will not be operational before 07:30 and a Sunday level of service will operate throughout the day.
South Western Railway’s Managing Director, Claire Mann, said:
“The sheer scale of this planned industrial action severely limits the number of trains we can run and routes we can serve, which is reflected in the reduced timetable we have published today.
“With this disruption set to be so considerable, I regretfully urge customers to only travel by rail if absolutely necessary between Tuesday 21 and Sunday 26 June.
“I am sorry these strikes will cause such disruption and am grateful to our customers for their patience and understanding as the rail industry works to bring this damaging nationwide action to an end.”
Network Rail route director Mark Killick said:
“We’re so sorry for the disruption next week and we know how difficult this will be for our customers so soon after the pandemic. We’ve trained 250 staff so we can keep some of the busiest lines open, focussing our resources on the routes that can keep the largest numbers of customers and freight moving and serving vital locations such as hospitals. That said, we will not compromise on safety and the strike does mean that large parts of the network will be closed.
“We are continuing to work with unions to find a solution and will keep doing so. But we also have to be honest and accept that we have to change the way we work, to reflect the changes in society and travel patterns post pandemic. Again, I’d like to apologise to everyone who find their journeys disrupted next week and urge our customers to check before they travel.”
Customers are urged to check the SWR website for the latest information at www.southwesternrailway.com/strike
Further Information
- Please see map for strike day services attached
- Map and timetable PDFs are available at: www.southwesternrailway.com/strike
- Journey planners are likely to be updated 2-4 days in advance
- On 22, 24 and 26 June, SWR will run a late starting Sunday level of service (from 0730). The timetables are not yet available, but customers can refer to existing Sunday service timetables here: www.southwesternrailway.com/plan-my-journey/timetables
- Summary of services running on strike days:
| Waterloo to Southampton | Waterloo to Woking | Waterloo to Basingstoke | Waterloo to Windsor |
| 2 fast trains per hour each way | 4 trains per hour each way | 2 trains per hour each way | 4 trains per hour each way |
| First train from Waterloo: 0730 | First train from Waterloo: 0720 | First train from Waterloo: 0715 | First train from Waterloo: 0715 |
| Last train from Waterloo: 1700 | Last train from Waterloo: 1750 | Last train from Waterloo: 1715 | Last train from Waterloo: 1722 |
| First train from Southampton: 0730 | First train from Woking: 0718 | First train from Basingstoke: 0724 | First train from Windsor: 0730 |
| Last train from Southampton: 1659 | Last train from Woking: 1748 | Last train from Basingstoke: 1654 | Last train from Windsor: 1730 |
| Services will call at: Waterloo Clapham Junction Woking Basingstoke Winchester Eastleigh Southampton Airport Southampton Central |
Services will call at: Waterloo Clapham Junction Wimbledon Surbiton Esher Hersham Walton-on-Thames Weybridge Byfleet & New Haw West Byfleet Woking |
Services will call at: Waterloo Clapham Junction Surbiton Woking Brookwood Farnborough Fleet Winchfield Hook Basingstoke |
Services will call at: Waterloo Vauxhall Clapham Junction Wandsworth Town Putney Barnes Barnes Bridge Chiswick Kew Bridge Brentford Syon Lane Isleworth Hounslow Feltham Ashford Staines Wraysbury Sunnymeads Datchet Windsor & Eton Riverside |
- Some services at the start and end of each strike day will run outside of this standard pattern
- The Island Line is not subject to strike action and will operate as usual.
