Merseyrail will provide a limited rail service for passengers as RMT union members of Network Rail take industrial action on Tuesday the 3rd, Wednesday the 4th, Friday the 6th and Saturday the 7th of January.

The UK-wide walk-out will impact the Liverpool City Region as Network Rail signalling and maintenance staff take strike action beginning:

• 02.00 on Tuesday the 3rd until 01.59 on Thursday the 5th of January
• 02.00 on Friday the 6th until 01.59 on Sunday the 8th of January

As per previous strike action, Merseyrail‘s ability to run trains is limited due to the number of Network Rail signalling and maintenance employees who are available to work. The rail operator will therefore be operating a 45-minute service which will call at all stations on a number of lines from 07.30 to 18.30 in order to support passengers.

No rail replacement buses will be operating during the industrial action and customers who need to travel outside the limited service hours are advised to use alternate travel methods. However, Friday the 6th and Saturday the 7th of January will see rail replacement buses available for the Kirkby line between Kirkby and Moorfields as planned engineering work will be taking place for the opening of Headbolt Lane station.

A brief overview of services which will run between 07.30 and 18.30 on the 3rd, 4th, 6th and 7th of January as follows:

• Chester and Ellesmere Port lines: No trains will operate between Chester and Rock Ferry or Ellesmere Port and Rock Ferry. Trains will operate every 45 minutes between Rock Ferry and Liverpool Central and will call at all stations.
• New Brighton line: Trains will run every 45 minutes and will call at all stations.
• West Kirby line: Trains will run every 45 minutes and will call at all stations.
• Southport line: Trains will run every 45 minutes and will call at all stations.
• Hunts Cross line: No trains will operate between Liverpool Central and Hunts Cross.
• Ormskirk line: On Tuesday the 3rd and Wednesday the 4th of January, trains will operate every 45 minutes and will call at all stations. On Friday the 6th and Saturday the 7th of January two trains will run every 45 minutes and will call at all stations in order to support the increase in passengers travelling due to the Kirkby line closure for engineering work.
• Kirkby line: On Tuesday the 3rd and Wednesday the 4th of January, trains will run every 45 minutes and will call at all stations. No services will operate on the Kirkby line on Friday the 6th and Saturday the 7th of January due to planned engineering works as part of the new Headbolt Lane station. Rail replacement bus services will operate on the Kirkby line between 07:00 and 18:30 with timetables available online at merseyrail.org and also at stations nearer to the time.

Thursday the 5th of January will see trains being operated from approximately 07.00 with a limited rail replacement bus service in place in order to support busy stations before 07.00. Passengers are being urged to visit the Merseyrail website for more details or ask a staff member at a station.

Sunday the 8th of January will see the usual timetable in operation apart from the Kirkby and Hunts Cross lines which will be impacted by planned engineering work. Further details for arrangements for these lines can be found on the Merseyrail website.

Customers who plan to use the Kirkby Line from the 9th of January and after will also see some timetable changes as further work continues for the new fleet of trains. Details can be found on station posters and via the Merseyrail website shortly.

Jane English, Acting Managing Director at Merseyrail, said: “Merseyrail has worked closely with Network Rail to ensure we are able to run the best service possible on these strike days and allow passengers to make essential journeys. We would like to apologise for the disruption caused once again to our passengers as a result of the action being taken by Network Rail signallers and maintenance staff.

“We would remind those who are travelling on between Tuesday 3 January and 7 January to plan their journeys in advance, that trains are likely to be very busy and bear in mind that Merseyrail services will not be operating any later than 18:30 on the affected days. Please be patient with us, we will get you where you need to be.”

Customers who need assistance to travel are advised to ask a member of station staff or get in touch with Merseyrail’s customer service team using the website ahead of making their travel.

Passengers who wish to use the Merseyrail network in order to connect for onward travel are advised to check with the rail operator they will be using as a large number of train companies will not be running services on the 3rd, 4th, 6th and 7th of January.

The full timetable can be found here: http://www.merseyrail.org/strike