December is strewn with strikes by transport workers across Europe, with walk-outs in France and Italy preceding the stoppages by Avanti West Coast train managers in the UK before and after Christmas. Most of these are on the railways, but aviation and local public transport will also be affected.
The strikes will wreck the travel plans for millions of passengers and put extra pressure on the transport system on some of the busiest days of the winter.
In addition, travellers can expect disruption-as-usual – such as the cancellation of a Eurostar train from Brussels to London on 11 December because of technical problems, and the plethora of Network Rail engineering projects starting later this month.
These are the key problems travellers face in December:
France
A national rail strike beginning at 7pm on Wednesday 11 February is likely to affect mainly trains in the Ile-de-France – Paris and the region around it.
The walk-out by the biggest rail union, the CGT, and the Sud-Rail union is indefinite.
Staff are stopping work in protest against proposed reforms of the SNCF (French Railways) freight division. But the impact on passenger traffic will be significant, particularly on the RER suburban express network in and around Paris, and on commuter lines. Trains that do run are likely to be very crowded.
Eurostar says: “A couple of French rail unions are calling for an unlimited strike from Wednesday 11 December 2024. We’re currently assessing how our timetable will be impacted if the strike goes ahead.”
Italy
Staff working for Trenitalia, the national rail enterprise, are expected to strike from 9pm on Thursday 12 December for 24 hours. The impact is uncertain.
City transport will also be affected, with Rome’s and Milan’s buses and metro likely to be severely disrupted for most of the day – though not during the late afternoon.
More strikes are set for Sunday 15 December, this time mainly targeting aviation. As with previous strikes, there is a mix of full-day and four-hour walk-outs. The stoppages that will have the maximum impact, in terms of passenger numbers, are of ground handlers and/or air-traffic controllers on Sunday afternoon at key airports including all three Milan hubs: Malpensa, Linate and Bergamo. Catania airport in Sicily may also be affected.
Airlines will try to work around the strikes, preponing or postponing some flights, but there are likely to be cancellations both in advance and on the day.
UK
Avanti West Coast
Christmas rail misery returns for Avanti West Coast passengers on 22, 23 and 29 December. Train managers on routes from London to Birmingham, Manchester, Glasgow and many other destinations will walk out in a dispute over how much they get paid for working on their days off.
The RMT general secretary, Mick Lynch, said: “Our members have had enough, and this strike action demonstrates their determination to win a fair deal.”
A spokesperson for Avanti West Coast said: “We are disappointed RMT have voted to decline the very reasonable offer made to them to resolve the rest-day-working dispute.
On strike days, most Avanti trains connecting the capital with Birmingham, Manchester, Liverpool and Glasgow will be cancelled, affecting tens of thousands of travellers.
Passengers who already have tickets for the first two dates can use their ticket for any alternative Avanti West Coast service between 16 and 24 December.
Those booked to travel on 29 December can take an alternative service between 28 December and 3 January.
The strike will put extra pressure on train operators that run parallel routes to the Avanti, including London Northwestern, Chiltern, CrossCountry and TransPennine Express. Flights between Glasgow and London are expected to become more expensive, with less choice.
Elizabeth line
On the main east-west line through London, an overtime ban by control room staff will end on Thursday 19 December, but disruption will continue.
From the final trains on Christmas Eve to 30 December, no trains will run west from London Paddington due to work on the HS2 project at Old Oak Common.
The following day RMT members will resume industrial action with a 24-hour strike on the Elizabeth line, beginning at 9pm on 31 December. The aim is to disrupt New Year’s Eve celebrations in central London.
Edinburgh Airport
Scotland’s busiest airport will experience a 19-day strike by fuel tanker drivers working for North Air from 5am on Wednesday 18 December, a week before Christmas. It will end at the same time on Monday 6 January. This period takes in the expected busiest days of the winter at the capital’s airport.
The union says the firm’s “belligerence” will “ground domestic and international flights over the festive season”.
Unite says: “Prestigious routes including United Airlines to New York and Emirates to Dubai along with Loganair’s domestic routes to the islands could be directly impacted.”
A spokesperson for the airport said: “We are disappointed that the two parties cannot reach a solution and urge them to continue discussions. A spokesperson for North Air said: “We are disappointed at Unite’s decision to proceed with industrial action at Edinburgh airport.”
North Air is one of five fuelling companies at the airport, and most passengers will not be affected because British Airways, easyJet and Ryanair use other firms. Loganair is unlikely to be hit because pilots can take on fuel at other airports. North Air is working on contingency plans that are likely to minimise the disruption for Emirates and United.
Finland
Pilots working for Finnair will walk out on Friday 13 December, and will refuse standby call-outs on other days in the run-up to Christmas – jeopardising flights. The dispute is over efficiency arrangements agreed during the Covid pandemic.