During Strike Action on December 13th, 14th, 16th, 17th, 24th until 27th and January 3rd, 4th, 6th, 7th there will be major disruptions across the rail network, with some areas having no trains at all.

A limited service will operate on busier routes across the South including later starts and earlier finishes. Some lines will have no services at all and having no replacement bus services.Trains will also start later on days following the strikes.

Network Rail are expecting difficulties on Christmas Eve and 27th December, but are still working out what this will mean for train services. They are advising that passengers check closer to the time to check what services will be running.

Alongside the action, there is also an overtime ban by RMT members between 13th December and 2nd January, meaning that services could be cancelled on short notice.

Passengers intending to travel should check with nationalrail.co.uk before they travel.

Passengers can also check with their individual train operators through these links:

• Gatwick Express
• Southeastern Railway
• Southern
• South Western Railway
• ThamesLink

John Halsall, Network Rail’s Southern region managing director, said: “I’m so sorry for everyone who will be affected by more strikes over Christmas and the New Year. We really wanted to avoid disruption over this busy period and want to reassure passengers that we’re doing everything we can to plan to run as many services as we can.

“There will be far fewer trains than usual, and only on mainline routes. Regrettably, the strong advice is to only travel if absolutely necessary and check for the latest updates before setting out.”