Travellers told to avoid tube on Monday as 4,000 station staff strike
London’s transport operator has warned people to expect “severe disruption” on the tube on Monday when 4,000 station staff are due to walk out in a 24-hour strike that will shut down much of the network.
Transport for London said there would be problems across all lines from the start of service on Monday to 8am on Tuesday, with a limited number of stations open. It advised against travel on the tube throughout that period “unless necessary”.
The National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers (RMT) has called the strike in protest against TfL plans to cut 600 posts to reduce costs. Only London Underground station staff will be involved, rather than the 10,000 RMT members who walked out in March.
Sources close to the union said the scale of the walkouts meant the entire tube network should close on safety grounds. TfL said: “Safety is our top priority and we will be doing all we can to safely keep as many services running for our customers as possible.”
Some tube stations had already shut temporarily over the platinum jubilee holiday weekend because of staff not working overtime as part of separate industrial action by the RMT that started on Friday, and is set to continue until 10 July.
Monday’s action means many stations – especially those in central and south London – will be closed, while those that can be opened may only open for limited periods. TfL said the situation was likely to change throughout the day, depending on whether it had enough staff to keep stations open safely.
If customers cannot avoid travelling on Monday, they are advised to travel after 8am and to complete journeys by 6pm. Buses and other TfL services, including DLR, London Overground and trams, are not affected by the strike and will be
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