South Western Railway: Industrial action to disrupt festive train travel

The rail operator has urged customers to avoid rail travel on 24 and 27 December

Industrial action will disrupt South Western Railway (SWR) services between 18 December and 2 January, the train operator has announced.

It said strikes and a ban on Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union members working overtime or on rest days meant its ability to operate train services was "significantly limited".

Major engineering works would also complicate its operations, SWR added.

It urged passengers to only travel if absolutely necessary on 18 December.

SWR said there would be a severely reduced service on a very limited number of routes, between 07:00 and 22:00 only.

• Four trains an hour between London Waterloo and Woking

• Two trains an hour between London Waterloo and Basingstoke

• Two trains an hour between London Waterloo and Southampton Central

• One train an hour between Basingstoke and Salisbury

The rail operator added that strike action affecting Network Rail would further limit SWR services, warning customers to avoid rail travel on 24 and 27 December.

Analysis by Paul Clifton, BBC South transport correspondent

One of the biggest and busiest rail operators in the country will be reduced to a trickle of trains on its core routes for two whole weeks.

Hardly any trains to Portsmouth. One every two hours to Salisbury. Services starting later and finishing earlier than normal.

The RMT's overtime ban will hit hard. Passengers will have to plan journeys carefully.

I reckon many - maybe most - will just give up and go by car instead.

Steve Tyler, SWR's performance and planning director, said while the overtime ban was not a strike, it would limit the number of trains in service each day.

"We have had to make some difficult decisions to be able to provide a reliable and consistent service throughout the period," he said.

The RMT has also announced that its members at Network Rail and train operating companies, including SWR, would be striking on 3, 4, 6, and 7 January 2023.