I am writing with details on changes to Great Northern, Southern, Thameslink and Gatwick Express services from next Monday 6 May to Saturday 11 May 2024 inclusive, because of industrial action by ASLEF.

The most affected day will be Tuesday 7 May when a strike is expected to take place. This will mean no trains on much of the network. It is however important that customers expect changes and check their journeys carefully on all dates leading up to and during the industrial action period.

Journey planners such as www.nationalrail.co.uk are now showing journeys for Monday 6 through to Wednesday 8 May. Journeys on Thursday 9, Friday 10 and Saturday 11 May will appear in journey planners from this Friday, 3 May.

A day-by-day, route-by-route summary and FAQs for customers is now available on the industrial action pages of our websites:

• Great Northern
• Southern
• Thameslink
• Gatwick Express

An overview is available below for reference.

As always, we would welcome your support in sharing this information on your own channels and encouraging all customers to check their journey plans for the period. This includes the days leading up the start of the industrial action given there are some changes because of planned engineering works over the three-day bank holiday weekend.

We’re very sorry for the disruption this will cause.

OVERVIEW

Monday 6 May (Early May Bank Holiday) – Overtime ban

A bank holiday timetable will be in place, with changes for planned engineering works that are happening over the three-day weekend. Customers should check before they travel for any short notice alterations and cancellations.


Tuesday 7 May - Strike

Regrettably, because of strike action there will be no trains on the vast majority of the GTR network. The only services that will be running are:

• A limited, non-stop, shuttle service between London Victoria and Gatwick Airport.
• A limited shuttle service calling at Luton, Luton Airport Parkway and St Pancras International only.
• A limited, non-stop, shuttle service between London King’s Cross and Cambridge.

It is important to note that these trains will not stop at any other stations.

We are advising any customers who have no alternative but to travel by train that day to leave plenty of time for their journey, as these limited shuttle services are expected to be very busy and there are likely to be queues to board.


Wednesday 8 May 2024 to Friday 10 May 2024 inclusive – Overtime ban

During this time there will be an amended timetable in place with fewer services overall.

These amended timetables have been designed to help passengers plan for their day, providing greater certainty of train times with fewer short-notice on-the-day alterations. Trains will be busier than usual, especially at peak times and customers may have to queue.

Gatwick Express will not be running, but Gatwick Airport will continue to be served by Southern and Thameslink trains.


Saturday 11 May – Overtime ban

On Southern and Gatwick Express our usual Saturday timetable is planned to run. However, engineering works will still be taking place across the network, so customers must check before travelling, as journeys may still be affected.

On Thameslink and Great Northern an amended timetable with fewer services will be running. Engineering works will also be taking place.


Other operators’ services during this entire period

It is also really important that customers check their entire journey when travelling during this period as other train operators across the country are also impacted by the overtime ban and strikes on different days, which could also make our stations and trains even busier.

If a journey involves using another train company, customers must check for any changes to their services and ensure that onward connections are available on the day they are travelling.