Strike action by the ASLEF trade union means that there will be no Southeastern train services at all on Saturday 30th July.
Southeastern is strongly advising passengers not to attempt to travel by train during this time, and, if their journey is necessary, to find another means of travelling.
There will be no Southeastern trains serving any of Kent, East Sussex or south-east London, including the Medway Towns, Tonbridge, Maidstone and the Weald, Thanet, Canterbury, Folkestone and Dover. There will be no Highspeed trains.
There will be no Southeastern trains at all on the Hastings line, nor the branch lines including Sittingbourne to Sheppey, the Medway Valley Line and the Grove Park to Bromley North line.
There will be no rail replacement buses or taxis available.
A reduced timetable will be put into place as follows:
|
Line of route |
Status on Saturday 30th July |
|
Woolwich line |
NO SERVICE |
|
Bexleyheath |
NO SERVICE |
|
Sidcup line |
NO SERVICE |
|
Hayes line |
NO SERVICE |
|
Grove Park line |
NO SERVICE |
|
Bromley South line |
NO SERVICE |
|
Sole Street line |
NO SERVICE |
|
Maidstone East line |
NO SERVICE |
|
Paddock Wood line |
NO SERVICE |
|
Hastings line |
NO SERVICE |
|
Medway Valley line |
NO SERVICE |
|
Sheerness line |
NO SERVICE |
|
Highspeed via Ashford |
NO SERVICE |
|
Highspeed via Gravesend |
NO SERVICE |
Alicia Andrews, Southeastern’s Commercial Director, said:
“If a strike goes ahead we won’t be able to run any trains at all, and so we’d strongly advise our passengers not to attempt to travel by train, and to make another plan if they do need to travel. We apologise for the obvious inconvenience this causes.”
Journey planners will be correct from 26 July, and so passengers with questions about the impact on their journeys should check the Southeastern website, which has been updated with comprehensive information advising them what to do. Information on refunds for people with unused tickets who decide not to travel is also available on the website.
Refunds and compensation
If you have already bought a ticket, you can apply for a refund if you don’t travel:
- Daily ticket holders can claim a full refund with no admin fee if they choose not to travel.
- Advance ticket holders can either apply for a full refund with no admin fee or return to the original retailer for an eVoucher, for use purchasing a future ticket. eVouchers are valid for 12 months from the date of issue.
- Season ticket holders (Flexi, monthly or longer) can use Delay Repay to claim a day travel back if they choose not to travel on days of industrial action, making sure to select the reason for delay as Industrial Action – did not travel. For Flexi ticket holders, to receive Delay Repay you must have activated a pass for the day you’re claiming.
- Weekly tickets – we recommend you don’t buy a weekly season ticket during the industrial action. If you already have a weekly ticket please go to our refunds page to claim a partial refund.
If you do travel and were delayed for 15 minutes or more, you are entitled to Delay Repay compensation.
As well as changes to the train service due to industrial action, from Saturday 23 – Sunday 31 July, there is a nine-day closure of the line between Victoria and Beckenham Junction/Shortlands while Network Rail engineers replace the track in Penge Tunnel.
More information
You can keep up to date here where we’ll post the latest information, follow us on Twitter, or you can sign up to receive service updates on the planned industrial action.
We’re sorry for the frustration and inconvenience that this industrial action will cause.
