UNION leaders have warned that rail disruption could continue until May as train passengers in Scotland faced another five days of disruption this week as Network Rail workers strike.
The UK-wide industrial action by members of the RMT union takes place on Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday.
The walkout by 40,000 RMT union members is severely disrupting rail services as many people return to work after the Christmas break.
It comes as flood damage closed the main rail line between Glasgow and Carlisle until Friday.
Avant West Coast has advised people not to travel to and from Scotland on the line in the meantime.
The RMT dispute does not directly involve ScotRail staff but will have a major impact on the train operator’s ability to provide services as many of the Network Rail workers walking out occupy safety-critical roles.
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On strike days, and on the non-strike day of Thursday January 5, ScotRail will run services on 12 routes across the central belt, Fife, and the Borders between 7.30am and 6.30pm.
RMT general secretary Mick Lynch has said industrial action will need to continue beyond May unless a reasonable offer is made.
Speaking from a picket line at Euston station in London, the union leader said: “They (the strikes) are likely to go ahead if there’s no offer that we can work on.
“We would like to get into a situation where we’re negotiating constantly with the companies and where we didn’t have to have strike action, and then work up a settlement that our members could vote on and accept.
“But if we don’t get that there will have to be more action, and we’ve got a mandate that runs through to May this year, and if we have to go further, that’s what we’ll need to do. We don’t want that, though.”
He added: “Our members are taking action right across the country, from the north of Scotland to the tip of Cornwall. The railway service has ground to a halt and it will be severely disrupted this week – we don’t take any pleasure in that.”
The war of words continued when he said ministers had been aware of this week's strike action since December 15 - their last meeting with the unions - "and they've done nothing since that time, over Christmas, enjoying the holidays". This was denied the transport secretary Mark Harper.
And he has accused the UK government of "blocking" a deal saying "ministerial interference" is preventing a settlement "We were available to meet and they didn't want to meet us. So they've waited until the strikes come to make these noises," he said.
The latest strike is part of a long-running dispute over pay and conditions at Network Rail and 14 train operating companies.
Network Rail has said a deal to end the strikes is "in touching distance" despite no improvement in its pay offer.
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Mr Harper, meanwhile, called for Mr Lynch and his RMT colleagues to get off the picket line and around a negotiating table.
He said more negotiations aimed at resolving the impasse between the unions and employers were scheduled for next week.
"I made sure there was a new and improved offer that went to the trade unions, and indeed two of the trade unions on Network Rail have settled the dispute and accepted the offer," he said.
"The RMT sadly decided to reject it and are continuing with strikes.
"I would much rather they got off the picket line and got back round the negotiating table to hammer out a deal on reform and pay with the employers."
The strikes are "damaging to the rail industry" and "damaging to the people that work on it", he added.
There has been anger from commuters about the continuing disruption to trains in Scotland.
This is absolutely ridiculous,I've not been able to travel on a train for over a mth when I want too. Can I get a refund on my railcard that I've not been able to use. Costing a fortune to travel by bus and 2hrs instead of 40mins. My stepson is stranded in Scotland as no trains
— Jo Curry (@JoCurry1) January 3, 2023
Great another week of trains apparently running, end up delayed or cancelled, great for those who need the trains to commute for work.
— Nikita Clarke (@NikitaOrr4) January 3, 2023
Day 4 of having to drive to work since the trains are off again. Absolute joke man. Definitely going back to only driving in, stupid expensive to have to pay a train pass then not actually have any trains to use it on. And @ScotRail won’t even refund 😒😒😒
— 🦈 Poteetza 🍕🦈 (@poteetz_) January 3, 2023
David Simpson, ScotRail’s service delivery director, said: “It’s really disappointing to see more widespread disruption across the whole Great Britain rail network as a result of the dispute between Network Rail and the RMT at a time when we need to be encouraging more people back to the railway.
“For ScotRail, it’s going to mean that we won’t be able to operate the vast majority of our services between January 3 and 7, which we know will be really frustrating for our customers.
“We’re advising customers to seek alternative means of transport and to only travel if they really need to on the days of strike action.
“Customers should check their journey in advance to make sure your train is running.”
ScotRail is running services on 12 routes across the central belt, Fife, and the Borders between 7.30am and 6.30pm.
These services are:
Edinburgh Waverley - Glasgow Queen Street via Falkirk High: two trains per hour
Edinburgh Waverley - Helensburgh Central: two trains per hour
Glasgow Central - Hamilton/Larkhall: two trains per hour
Glasgow Central - Lanark: two trains per hour
Edinburgh Waverley - Glasgow Central via Shotts: one train per hour
Edinburgh Waverley - Cowdenbeath: two trains per hour
Edinburgh Waverley - Tweedbank: two trains per hour
Edinburgh Waverley - North Berwick: one train per hour
Edinburgh Waverley - Larbert: one train per hour
Glasgow Queen Street - Larbert: one train per hour
Glasgow Queen Street - Falkirk Grahamston: one train per hour
Milngavie - Springburn: two trains per hour
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