ASLEF December strikes: when Manchester services will be affected including Avanti West Coast and Northern

Members of train drivers union ASLEF will take strike action across a week in December. This is as part of their ongoing dispute over pay and working conditions. 

The action is set to impact Manchester stations, but days of when workers at each rain company strike will be staggered. An overtime ban begins on Friday December 1 and runs until Saturday December 8, which may impact companies ability to operate all services. 

From Saturday December 2 to Friday December 8, at least two train companies will have drivers on strike. The first day will see East Midlands Railway and LNER drivers on strike. 

Using this strike schedule, we can see on which days trains in and around Manchester will be most affected. On some days, the actual strike action may not have an impact, but the overtime ban might. 

Northern Trains, Cross Country, Avanti West Coast and Transpennine Express all operate services around the Greater Manchester area. We’ve collected together information on which days drivers at these will be on strike. 

December train strikes and the potential impact on Greater Manchester

Avanti West Coast drivers in ASLEF will strike on Saturday December 3. This is one of the main connections to Manchester from Birmingham and London. According to the Avanti website, they also expect disruption on December 2, 4 and 9 due to amended timetables. 

CrossCountry drivers are set to strike on Thursday December 7, with no CrossCountry services running on this day. The rest of the period during which strikes are taking place are set to be affected  by amended timetables, with extra details available on the company website. 

The worst affected day for Manchester during the strike period is likely to be Friday December 8. Both Northern Trains and Transpennine Express drivers will be on strike on this day. 

Northern has said that there will be no normal service from November 30 to December 10. There will be no services on December 8 and several other days will be disrupted due to strikes elsewhere. 

Transpennine Express, which connects Manchester with Yorkshire, the North East and Scotland, will also be affected. The company has said that there will be an impact to services the day before and after December 8, and that normal service will resume on December 10.