SOUTH Western Railway (SWR) has outlined its services during the upcoming rail strikes by the ASLEF union.

Railway users travelling to and from Basingstoke will be affected by an upcoming industrial action by the ASLEF union.

  • Trains will be affected on:
  • Monday, January 29 – overtime ban 
  • Tuesday, January 30 – strike action
  • Wednesday, January 31, to Tuesday, February 6 – overtime ban  

Strike action has been called on Tuesday 30 January, with SWR running a severely reduced service on a limited number of lines. Trains will only run between:

  • London Waterloo and Basingstoke
  • London Waterloo and Feltham via Twickenham
  • London Waterloo and Guildford
  • London Waterloo and Woking
  • Basingstoke and Salisbury

The rest of the network will be closed, including the Island Line, and trains will only run between 0700 and 1900. There will be no train services outside of these times.

Customers are advised to only travel if absolutely necessary and to avoid the first and last trains of the day, which are likely to be extremely busy.

Journey planners for Tuesday 30 January are up to date and if customers must travel, they should check their entire journey carefully, as other operators will be affected.

On Monday, January  29 and Wednesday, January 31, through to Tuesday, February 6, action short of a strike will mean a ban on overtime working.

Services across the network will be subject to short-notice alterations and cancellations are also possible. On the Island Line, a reduced timetable will operate, with trains running once per hour.

Journey planners are now up to date through to Thursday 1 February, with updates for other days to follow.

Stuart Meek, South Western Railway's chief operating officer said:

"We’re very sorry to announce that industrial action, including full strike action, will affect our network at the end of January and into early February.

"It has been a tough start to the year due to adverse weather conditions and these damaging strikes will cause yet more disruption for our customers.

"Our advice is to only travel if absolutely necessary on Tuesday 30 January and to check before travelling on all other affected dates. It is also vital that customers check their entire journey on all the affected dates, as other operators will be affected.

"Once again we’re very sorry for the disruption this will cause and we thank our customers for their continued patience."