More misery for South Western Railway passengers as fresh strike action is announced

  • London
South Western Railway workers will strike on December 22nd Credit: PA

Workers on South Western Railway are to strike on the Saturday before Christmas in the long-running dispute over guards on trains.

The company, which has been hit by a series of delays in recent weeks because of signal and train failures, runs services into London Waterloo, the busiest station in the UK.

RMT general secretary Mick Cash said:

"South Western Railway continues to refuse to resolving this dispute, which is about safety, security and access while the company look to open up a loophole that would allow them to run driver-only services at their discretion.

"Recent figures have shown a shocking a surge in violence on our railways. It is frankly appalling that South Western Railway are looking for a green light to throw the guard off their trains as and when they see fit in the name of profit.

"SWR might think it's acceptable to play fast and loose with passenger safety, security and access but RMT members, who have stood firm throughout this dispute despite appalling harassment from the company, will not accept a dilution of the safety regime on the railway.

"There's a simple solution to this dispute and it means SWR stop playing with words and negotiate the guard guarantee that reflects the safety values of the agreements RMT has pinned down in other parts of the rail industry."

A South Western Railway spokesperson said:

“By targeting the last Saturday before Christmas when peopleare trying to travel to be with family and friends the RMT is ensuring themaximum misery is inflicted at what should be a time of relaxation andenjoyment.

“This action is totally unnecessary. We have guaranteed toroster a guard on every train, and we need more, not fewer guards – 70 more byMay 2019 – and we have an opportunity with the introduction of the new suburbantrains to operate these trains differently to maximise the customer benefits.

“The RMT is scaremongering by using crime in its statement.The number of crimes on the SWR network has reduced by nearly 6% since April.SWR’s team of 35 Rail Community Officers work on trains and at stations toprevent and detect crimes. They work closely with BTP officers to help reduceincidents on the network, engaging with customers and highlighting suspiciousactivity.

“Should this action go ahead, we will do everything we canto provide the best service possible for our customers.”