Train travelers in Great Britain have to keep their nerve even after the end of a multi-day strike on the railways. The route operator Network Rail warned of “significant disruptions” at night until January.

A walkout by the RMT union over Christmas at Network Rail ended early in the morning. However, it was expected that traffic would only return to normal during the course of the day.

Further strikes have also been announced at individual companies. On Monday evening, the TSSA union began a 24-hour strike at Cross Country rail operator, which covers key long-distance services. At Great Western Railway and West Midlands Trains, TSSA members, who are responsible for training, controls, customer communication and timetables, among other things, wanted to stop work for a day from Wednesday afternoon.

The Ministry of Transport called on the unions to cancel the strikes and accept the tariff offer from the private railways. However, in view of the rising cost of living, the employee representatives are calling for significantly higher wage increases and, in view of widespread austerity measures, more security for jobs. RMT has already announced further strikes for early January.

According to an analysis by the newspaper “Guardian”, there are enormous problems in the British rail network. According to this, more than half of the trains departing from the 15 most important stations this year experienced delays or other disruptions. According to experts, the problems are due to the privatization of the railway companies. This led to higher costs and public subsidies. The pandemic has exacerbated the labor shortage.