Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Liveupdated

Tube strikes - live: Full list of lines affected as Londoners struggle to travel around the capital

Around 10,000 Tube workers in the RMT union have walked out for 24 hours

Stuti Mishra,Lucy Thackray
Friday 19 August 2022 12:26 EDT
Comments
Related video: Education minister criticises striking train workers for ‘holding the country hostage’

Your support helps us to tell the story

This election is still a dead heat, according to most polls. In a fight with such wafer-thin margins, we need reporters on the ground talking to the people Trump and Harris are courting. Your support allows us to keep sending journalists to the story.

The Independent is trusted by 27 million Americans from across the entire political spectrum every month. Unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock you out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. But quality journalism must still be paid for.

Help us keep bring these critical stories to light. Your support makes all the difference.

Only two Tube lines are operating a good service this evening amid a 24-hour strike by 10,000 London Underground workers who are members of the RMT union.

The Elizabeth line and DLR are running as usual, while the Bakerloo, Circle, Hammersmith & City, Jubilee, Metropolitan, Piccadilly, Victoria and Waterloo & City lines are all fully suspended.

The Central, District and Northern lines are part suspended, with a pared back service on the routes that are in operation; the London Overground has a good service on “most routes” but the Liverpool Street to Cheshunt/Chingford/Enfield Town part of the network is suspended.

Earlier today, politicians hit out at transport workers in response to ongoing industrial action.

PM hopeful Liz Truss said she “will not let our country be held to ransom by militant trade unionists”, while transport secretary Grant Shapps threatened to impose new working terms on striking rail employees, revealing plans to use a section 188 order to end the disputes.

Tube disruption to continue into Saturday

Despite today’s Tube strike only being 24 hours, disruption is expected to continue into Saturday morning.

Most TfL services will run as normal after 8am, but expect disruption on the following lines and areas:

London Overground

Reduced service between 08:00 and 18:00. No service before 08:00 or after 18:00. No service Gospel Oak-Barking. No Night Overground

Elizabeth line

  • Central (Paddington-Abbey Wood) - reduced service after 18:00
  • East (Liverpool Street-Shenfield) - trains running every 30 minutes 07:00-17:30 only. Trains won't stop at Maryland, Forest Gate, Manor Park, Goodmayes
  • West (Paddington-Reading/Heathrow) - trains every 30 minutes 07:10-17:40 only. Heathrow trains only running to Terminal 4

District line

No service between Wimbledon and Parson's Green, and Richmond and Turnham Green, before 08:00 and after 18:00

Bakerloo line

No service north of Queen's Park

Trams

Reduced service

Helen Coffey19 August 2022 17:26

Full list of Tube lines affected this evening

As Londoners struggle to cross the capital to get home from work or attend Friday night plans during today’s Tube strike, here’s a full list of the status of every line on the network:

Elizabeth line

Good service.

DLR

Good service.

London Overground

Good service on most routes. No service between Liverpool Street - Cheshunt / Chingford / Enfield Town due to strike action.

Tram

Minor delays.

Central line

Part suspended: a reduced service is operating between White City and West Ruislip / Ealing Broadway, between Liverpool Street and Hainault via Newbury Park and between Leytonstone and Epping approximately every 15 minutes. No service on the rest of the line due to strike action.

District line

Part suspended: a reduced service is operating between West Ham and Dagenham East, approximately every 15 minutes. No service on the rest of the line due to strike action.

Northern line

Part suspended: a reduced service is operating between Golders Green and Edgware and between East Finchley and High Barnet / Mill Hill East, approximately every five minutes.

Bakerloo, Circle, Hammersmith & City, Jubilee, Metropolitan, Piccadilly, Victoria and Waterloo & City lines

All suspended.

Helen Coffey19 August 2022 16:59

Londoners get creative with commutes

Londoners have been posting about cycling, walking and even jogging to work today, in a bid to avoid the strike-decimated Tube network.

Jenni tweeted: “Ran 10 miles to work and said hi to the monkeys. A great way to avoid the tube strike madness.”

Meanwhile, London shop Decorexi reported: “London sounds different when public transport is off grid. #Chiswick surprisingly calm at the moment with traffic flowing well. Plenty of people out and about on foot and cycle lane being well used.”

Lucy Thackray19 August 2022 16:32

Why are Tube workers on strike? Mick Lynch explains members' demands

RMT Union boss Micky Lynch has spoken out “the future of the pension scheme which is under threat” for striking workers today.

“There’s negotiatons going on between the government, treasury and Mayor Khan’s office about the future funding of London Underground. They’ve cut two billion pounds from the funding, and that has put at risk our members’ pensions,” he told LondonLive.

“They want to decimate the pension and make it into a completely different, cheaper scheme. That will make our members poorer in retirement and probably pay more while they’re working. There’s also threats to terms and conditions, and a threat of a loss of jobs.”

Mr Lynch said the RMT Union was “being excluded from talks”, adding that “offering our members terms and conditions as a hostage to get the funding of the railway and the bus services, the whole of TfL, pushed downwards”.

Lucy Thackray19 August 2022 15:58

Eight TfL lines remain fully suspended amid strikes

As the end of the working day approaches, eight of TfL’s lines, all Underground routes, remain completely out of action. They are: the Bakerloo, Circle, Hammersmith & City, Jubilee, Metropolitan, Piccadilly, Victoria and Waterloo & City Lines.

The Elizabeth Line and DLR are the only two TfL lines with a good service.

Meanwhile the London Overground has no service between Liverpool Street - Cheshunt / Chingford / Enfield Town due to strike action, but a good service on other areas of the line.

On the Central line a reduced service is operating between White City and West Ruislip, between Liverpool Street and Hainault via Newbury Park and between Leytonstone and Epping approximately every 15 minutes.

As with earlier, a reduced District Line service is operating between West Ham and Dagenham East, approximately every 15 minutes.

Lucy Thackray19 August 2022 15:42

Saturday’s rail strikes: Which trains are scheduled to run?

Saturday will see the end of the London Tube strike (with some knock-on effects expected to cause disruption first thing), and the beginning of the second RMT Union rail strike this week.

It’s expected to see only one fifth of services running across the UK, with large swathes of the country cut off entirely from the rail network.

Some companies have published emergency timetables with one hourly train on key routes, others have warned of just two or three services total on some routes. Meanwhile, some have simply said they will not be running a service. All, including Network Rail, have urged the public to avoid train travel for the duration of the 24-hour walkout.

But for absolutely essential journeys, which trains are set to run on Saturday? Here’s what we know so far.

Rail strikes: Which trains are running on Saturday?

Many of the UK’s trains services will be off-limits

Lucy Thackray19 August 2022 14:46

Ghost train: Eerie shots show London’s abandoned Tube stations

Photos have emerged of London’s Tube stops and trains lying empty, or closed for the day, amid today’s RMT Union strike.

Having been warned vociferously to stay home and avoid train travel across town, few Londoners have been using the trickle of trains still running on the Central, Northern, District and Overground.

One image showed just one passenger in the carriage of a Central line train.

One person on the Central Line this morning
One person on the Central Line this morning (PA)
Escalators at Liverpool Street
Escalators at Liverpool Street (PA)
A closure notice at Stratford
A closure notice at Stratford (PA)
Lucy Thackray19 August 2022 14:03

Beat the Avanti West Coast cancellations – with a private first-class train

Travellers from London to Birmingham and Manchester who are struggling to find space on Avanti West Coast trains can instead enjoy first-class travel for the next four Friday evenings. A private operator is laying on a special train with a flat fare of £75.

The service is branded “The Friday Charter” and is run by Locomotive Services Group. The carriages are old British Rail Intercity Mk 3 stock, beloved by many rail enthusiasts for their comfort and panoramic windows. All the seating is three-abreast seating.

“Say goodbye to packed commuter trains and hello to luxurious leg room and cushioned comfort,” the operator says.

Read the full story:

Beat the Avanti West Coast cancellations – with a private first-class train

Exclusive: Intercity luxury service will run each Friday evening from London to Birmingham and Manchester

Simon Calder19 August 2022 13:34

Grant Shapps threatens to impose new working terms on striking rail workers

New working terms will be imposed on striking rail workers if they refuse to accept deals on the table, the transport secretary has threatened.

Grant Shapps stepped up his battle with the rail unions by revealing plans to use a section 188 order to end the disputes, saying: “That is the direction that this is moving in now.”

But one union rejected his claim that an 8 per cent pay rise is on offer, insisting the privatised rail firms have offered just 2 per cent – alongside job losses and pension cuts.

“Everything Grant Shapps does seems to be aimed at ramping up this dispute rather than resolving it,” said Luke Chester, from the Transport Salaried Staffs’ Association (TSSA) said.

Read the full story:

Grant Shapps threatens to impose new working terms on striking rail workers

Transport secretary steps up battle with unions, saying ‘That is the direction this is moving in now’

Rob Merrick19 August 2022 13:06

Elizabeth Line and DLR still operating

Although most Tube lines are completely suspended today during the strike by London Underground workers, the Elizabeth line and DLR are both still running.

Both are operating a “good service” according to TfL.

Meanwhile, most of the London Overground is working, albeit with a reduced service on some routes and minor delays.

There is no service from Liverpool Street - Cheshunt / Chingford / Enfield Town.

Helen Coffey19 August 2022 13:02

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in