Monthly tube strikes over ticket office job cuts: First one 7th September

London Underground workers will be on strike from 5pm 6th September until 5pm 7th September, in a protest over plans to cut 800 ticket office staff.

There will be a one day strike every month, according to the Rail Maritime and Transport (RMT) union and Transport Salaried Staffs Association (TSSA), until plans to reduce ticket office opening hours are withdrawn.

RMT general secretary Bob Crow commented: "These cuts would leave stations and platforms unstaffed and would remove the very people who are trained to deal with emergencies.

"Our members have voted for strike action to defend their jobs and the safety of the Tube network, and we hope that Tube users will stand with us to demand that existing safety standards are not ripped to shreds."

Howard Collins, LU's chief operating officer, told the BBC: "It is simply not possible to go on with a situation where some ticket offices sell fewer than 10 tickets an hour.

"We need to change, but we will do so without compromising safety, without compulsory redundancies."

Business leaders warn the strikes will cost the London economy £48 million a day and slow down the recovery, according to the Daily Telegraph.

Further strikes are planned at the same time on 3 October, 2 November and 28 November.

You can use Transport for London's journey planner to find an alternate means of travel.

My view on the Tube strikes:

I have a lot of sympathy with the striking Tube staff. The main reason why ticket offices are not used as much is the £5 minimum top-up imposed by Transport for London. This leads to long queues at the ticket machines, which causes congestion. Many of the machines break down as well.

If the £5 minimum top-up was removed for all stations facing a reduction in opening hours, no doubt we would see far more than 10 tickets an hour sold at these station

Ticket office staff are also able to provide a wide range of advice.

A few weeks ago, my Oyster card stopped working, and a ticket office staff member at Walthamstow Central was able to inform me why it stopped working, refund the money from the old card, and issue me with a new card, three things a ticket machine cannot do.

Ironically*, one of the few times I need to take the tube to work is on September 7th, so I'll need to get up at 5:50am and get two buses.

White City depot strike vote:

In related news, drivers at White City depot on the Central Line have voted to strike over a colleague sacked for what the RMT describe as a minor incident.

Dates for this strike have not yet been set.


*I trust my use of this word meets with Simon Heffer's approval.