Train strikes on 8th, 10th and 12th January

[andrewbowden]

Oh totally.  Unions exist for their members.  That's what they are there for!

[ringi]

The “privatised companies” had such short contacts that what they risked losing by standing up to the unions is a lot more then they stood to gain.    After all, it would be the next company that took over the services a few years later that got the benefits.   Most of the union activists retire on a good pension in a few years time, so don’t care what happens to the railways long term.

However the union have done 100% what they members have paid them to do, therefore I can only say “well done” to them…..

[andrewbowden]

Well Southern have got to the stage where all the changes have been implemented and they can run a strike day service that's not that different to normal!

Most of this is caused by government meddling but the rail industry can't be held frozen in time.  Things change.

[marpleexile]

I read recently that one of the drivers behind rail privatisation was to crush the unions!  Ha!  What actually happened was that the privatised companies decided it was generally just to pacify the unions so nothing much has changed.  Until now...

It came up with all the Southern Rail shenanigans - Southern Rail continued to get their government subsidy, whether the trains were running or not. So rather than losing money during strike days, they actually made money - the bulk of their passengers were season ticket holders who didn't get a refund, they didn't have to pay the striking workers, and they had reduced overheads such as fuel costs and maintenance/wear & tear.

[andrewbowden]

With the right safety equipment there's no reason why the driver can't open and close the doors.  As you say Ringi, they do it on the trams.  They do it on the London Underground (where there's lots of cameras to allow the driver to monitor the platform.). Indeed, London Underground's entire fleet has just one person on it as standard.  There are 12 car trains in the south east running with just the driver. 

It would also prevent something I see reasonably frequently on our local services.  I.e. where a train arrives at a station and the doors resolutely remain shut for a minute or two because the guard's in the middle of selling someone a ticket and can't open the doors!  So all the passengers shuffle around waiting and the train is then delayed.  All because the guard is in the wrong place, and the driver isn't allowed to do it!

I read recently that one of the drivers behind rail privatisation was to crush the unions!  Ha!  What actually happened was that the privatised companies decided it was generally just to pacify the unions so nothing much has changed.  Until now...

[ringi]

I hate to say it, but one of the reasons I think buses and trams are MUCH better option then trains for investment in local transport is the railway unions.....
Trams don't need guards, so why do small trains?

(The government has ONLY specified that the driver CAN open and close the doors, it does not stop there being a 2nd set of controls for a guard to use.)

[hatter76]

In its simplicity the strike comes down to who opens and closes the doors. In the tender the government specified the driver not the guard which is a change from their traditional role.  Unfortunately its the commuter stuck in the middle.

[the rover]

FYI - there are to be strikes affecting Northern Trains on these days, some services will run but some are being replaced with buses.

Please check on the Northern Train website to see which services are being affected.