West Midlands Passengers Told to Plan Ahead as Trains Face Weekend Pressure

Passengers travelling across the West Midlands and Chiltern area are being warned to expect a particularly busy bank holiday weekend, with strike action, Birmingham Pride and warmer weather all expected to increase pressure on trains and stations.

Industrial action affecting West Midlands Railway and London Northwestern Railway services will mean significantly reduced timetables across all WMR and LNR routes on Friday 22 May and Saturday 23 May. As a result, other operators serving the region are expected to see heavier demand than usual on both days.

The warning also comes as tens of thousands of people are expected to travel into Birmingham for Pride celebrations. With warm weather also likely to draw more people into the city centre for days and nights out, stations including Birmingham New Street, Snow Hill and Moor Street are expected to be busier than normal.

WMR and LNR are advising passengers to only travel if necessary during the strike-affected period and to allow extra time if they do need to make a journey. Other operators, including CrossCountry, Avanti West Coast, Chiltern Railways and Transport for Wales, are urging customers to plan ahead and check their journeys before setting off.

Passengers planning to travel between Friday 22 May and Monday 25 May are being advised to use their train operator’s journey information or the National Rail website before travelling.

Martin Colmey, Operations Director for Network Rail's Central route, said:

"Bank holidays are always busy on the railway but strike action significantly reducing WMR and LNR services will mean other operators will be even busier than normal. It's an exciting weekend with Birmingham Pride taking place and we want everyone to travel safely in and out of the city centre. Always plan your journey, check before you travel and allow plenty of time. Importantly, if you are travelling home late, know your last few trains and don't rely on the very last one which might be too busy to safely board.”

Michael Stewart, Commercial and Customer Strategy Director at Chiltern Railways, said:

"Our services and stations in the West Midlands, particularly at Birmingham Moor Street, Solihull and Dorridge, will be significantly busier this bank holiday weekend. With tens of thousands of people heading to the city on Saturday and Sunday for Birmingham Pride, please check before you travel, plan ahead and take a bottle of water with you due to the expected hot weather."

Jonny Wiseman, Customer Experience Director for WMR and LNR, said:

"We advise our customers to only travel if necessary on Friday and Saturday due to the impact of industrial action on our network. Some routes will have no service and customers who choose to travel on other lines should allow extra time for their journeys. We apologise for the inconvenience caused."

CrossCountry’s Service Delivery Director, Nick Westcott, said:

“Across the West Midlands, we’re expecting a very busy Bank Holiday weekend with much-increased travel demand. We’re working closely with industry partners to get people where they need to be, but trains are likely to be much busier than usual. We ask customers to plan ahead, check before they travel and allow extra time for their journeys.”

Avanti West Coast’s Customer Experience Director, Kathryn O’Brien, said:

“Working in collaboration with our railway partners, we are advising customers travelling into Birmingham New Street this Bank Holiday weekend to check their journeys in advance. With tens of thousands of people expected to head into the city to celebrate Birmingham Pride and enjoy the warm weather, train services may be busier than normal.”

Sarah Higgins, Operations Director at Transport for Wales, said:

"Transport for Wales will be running its normal timetable over the bank holiday weekend, but some services may be much busier than usual due to industrial action at West Midlands Railway affecting Shrewsbury to Birmingham and Hereford to Birmingham services on Friday 22 and Saturday 23 May. With high temperatures also forecast, customers are encouraged to take extra care when travelling, check for the latest travel information using the TfW website, mobile app, or social media channels, and to stay hydrated."

Image: Chiltern Railways