Half the lines are closed – affecting large areas of the United Kingdom and most of Scotland and Wales – with limited hours from 7.30am. until 6.30 p.m. for those who are open. Usually busy stations like London Euston were almost abandoned except for queues by union members. Government accused of ‘actively preventing’ deal with layoffs alert as rail strikes begin – watch live travel updates Passenger Louis Cartwright-Walls showed up at Cardiff station, hoping to catch a train to Newport for a “vital” business meeting. But the departure tables are empty. “I looked on the internet and it said some trains were moving, but I knew that would not be true,” he told Sky News. “I rely on trains – I do not drive, this is my only transfer. “I have to pay for an Uber if nothing shows up. It will cost over £ 40. But they will raise their prices, I’m sure.” Image: Birmingham New Street Station was mostly empty At Birmingham New Street Station, some aspiring passengers and passengers were trying to work out their travel plans. After a six-hour flight from Egypt, Carol Hutchinson arrived in the United Kingdom to find that her direct train from Birmingham International Station had been canceled. She made her way to New Road and waited to board what appeared to be one of the few trains still in circulation. “I think it will only be upright … I’m not even sure I will continue with my suitcase,” he said. Use the Chrome browser for a more accessible video player 0:29 “Open the Doors” requires passengers Image: The scene at Euston Station in London Students and parents also said they had to deal with the stress of developing alternative plans to get to school for the A-level and GCSE exams today. Roads in cities and town centers were busier than usual during rush hour, according to the National Road. Unexpectedly, this did not happen on the highways and main roads A. By 7 in the morning they seemed quieter than an average Tuesday. Use the Chrome browser for a more accessible video player 1:07 The government “will continue the reforms” By 8 a.m., live cameras showed queues on routes leading from the M61 to Manchester and from the spaghetti junction in Birmingham, but many other major routes remained quieter than usual. “We think a lot of people may have chosen to work from home,” Frank Bird, senior network designer at National Highways, told Sky News. Read more: Travelers must “stay on course” in the face of “pointless escalation” of railway strikes, warns Boris Johnson Some 40,000 members of the Rail, Shipping and Transport Association (RMT) for the rail network and 13 train operators are taking action today following talks that failed to resolve a dispute over wages, jobs and working conditions. Use the Chrome browser for a more accessible video player 0:33 RMT: Government “lies” and “dictates terms” Network Rail has warned that the strikes – which are also scheduled for Thursday and Saturday – will cause a six-day break due to the negative effects on services in the intermediate days. In the days between strikes, 60% of services will be operational. London Underground workers are also on strike today, with most transport services to London severely disrupted or closed by 8am tomorrow. Concerns about huge taxi fares Travelers are likely to pay more for Uber fares due to the increase in pricing automatically applied in response to real-time demand when there are not enough cars available. Some have already reported increases, with Londoner Jamie Murphy writing on Twitter: “The great Uber driver tells me he ‘saved me this morning.’ Use the Chrome browser for a more accessible video player 5:08 Railway chief: “It breaks my heart” Addison Lee, a London-based taxi company, was almost sold out by slot machines yesterday for her travel time this morning. The National Express said coaches have seen a sharp increase in bookings. Read more: Only 20% of UK services will be operational when staff leave – here’s what you need to know about the holidays Use the Chrome browser for a more accessible video player 2:24 “We love our railways,” says PM Social media users have also complained about huge fees for taxis to airports. Alexis Rodney wrote on Twitter: “They want 200 200 for a taxi from Heathrow to London to cover the train strike. I will walk like Chaucer and the pilgrims before I pay.” But in the area around the train stations, taxi drivers said the strikes were bad for business. While waiting outside Winchester Station, a normally busy hub for passengers traveling to London, Gorkhin Gul said: “It will be difficult to work today, there are very few customers around.”
