How will rail strikes impact the Midlands this weekend?

Another rail strike is taking place today, as members of Aslef Union walk out in a long-running dispute over pay.

Members of Aslef will walk out on 26 November, impacting 7 operators across the Midlands.

The strike action will also cause disruption for passengers travelling on Sunday (27 November).

What Midlands train companies will be affected?

The 12 companies facing the fresh strike are:

• Avanti West Coast

• Chiltern Railways

• CrossCountry

• East Midlands Railway (EMR)

• Greater Anglia

• London North Eastern Railway (LNER)

• West Midlands Trains

The union said it was still waiting for a pay offer from the employers, despite a series of talks.

Mick Whelan, general secretary for Aslef, said they "don’t want to be taking this action", and added: "Withdrawing our labour is always a last resort for a trade union."

Mr Whelan added that the industry wanted drivers "to take a real terms pay cut" amid soaring inflation.

“We want the companies – which are making huge profits – to make a proper pay offer so that our members can keep up with the cost of living”, Mr Whelan said.

In response to the Aslef strike, a Rail Delivery Group spokesperson said: “We are incredibly frustrated the Aslef leadership has decided to take further strike action.

“We regret Aslef’s decision, which will cause real disruption to passengers and hit its members’ pay packets.

“Instead of staging more counterproductive strike action which increases the very real financial challenge the industry is facing, we ask them to work with us to secure both a pay deal and the changes needed for it to thrive in the long term and improve reliability across the network.”