Union leaders have announced that train drivers at London North Eastern Railway (LNER) will go on strike every weekend in September, October, and two in November.
The union representing train drivers, Aslef, said a breakdown in agreements and industrial relations was the cause of the walkouts at LNER.
The current pay dispute with all train companies, which moved one step closer to a resolution in England this week following a new pay offer, is unrelated to the new strike action.
After recent discussions, government-owned LNER, which runs services on the East Coast Mainline between London and Edinburgh, expressed its “surprisal and disappointment” at the announcement.
Aslef announced that its member drivers at LNER will take to the streets on Saturdays between August 31 and November 9 and on Sundays between September 1 and November 10.
LNER trains travel through important cities like Newcastle, York, and Durham while departing from London King’s Cross station.
For over two years, several railway strikes have resulted in service cancellations and passenger disruptions.
The 22-day walkouts are part of a longer dispute over train driver wages at 16 train companies, which appears to be coming to an end in England thanks to a new pay offer this week.
According to Aslef general secretary Mick Whelan, the union was “forced” to go on strike at LNER.
The train operator was accused by him of “boorish behavior and bullying tactics”, acting in “bad faith”, and “repeatedly” breaking agreements.
“Finding a way to end this long-running dispute which only damages the rail industry” is the stated goal of LNER’s ongoing collaboration with the union.
“We will prioritize keeping customers as unaffected as possible during the upcoming Aslef strikes, which regrettably will still result in delays and disruptions,” said a statement.
“Any accusations of bullying are taken very seriously by the company, and this is not something that is tolerated anywhere in the business,” a spokesperson said.
The announcement has not yet received a response from the Department of Transport.
LNER said: “Our top priority during the upcoming Aslef strikes—which, regrettably, will still result in delays and disruption—will be to minimize the impact on customers. We were shocked and disappointed to learn of this after recent fruitful discussions. We will keep collaborating with Aslef to find a solution to this protracted conflict that is only hurting the rail sector.”
