Published on: Tuesday, 26 September 2017
Last updated: Tuesday, 26 September 2017
You may be aware that the RMT has called two 24-hour strikes by conductors working for Greater Anglia, on Tuesday 3 October and Thursday 5 October.
We’d like to re-assure you that Greater Anglia is planning to run a full, normal service on both of these days, with no service alterations.
About 60 per cent of our services do not have conductors – these are commuter trains to London Liverpool Street from Essex, Cambridgeshire, Hertfordshire and Ipswich. For the remaining 40% of services which do have conductors (intercity and regional services and on a couple of other routes in Essex - see below for a full list), we have trained extra staff to safely cover for conductors who choose to take part in the strike action.
Greater Anglia is keeping conductors on its trains
We highly value our conductors. We know customers agree that they do a great job providing them with help and assistance on our trains. That is why we are keeping conductors on our trains and guaranteeing their jobs right through to the end of our franchise in October 2025. There will be no erosion of their pay or terms and conditions. They will still be safety trained and continue to have to pass key safety, competence and medical tests to carry out the conductor’s role.
We want our conductors to be able to provide even more help to our customers, so when we get new trains, from 2019, we’d like drivers to open and close the train doors, which would mean conductors can spend more time with customers (as they wouldn’t have to break off from helping customers to go and open and close the doors at every station).
Drivers already safely open and close doors on 60 per cent of our trains, and have done so for 30 years. Independent safety reports by the Railway and Safety Standards Board and the Office of Rail and Road conclude that, as long as correct procedures are followed, it is at least as safe for drivers to open and close doors.
So, our proposals are all about giving a better and safer service to our customers, by guaranteeing our conductors’ jobs, but changing their roles slightly - so that they can spend more time with customers, using a safe method of operation where drivers open and close the train doors (a system which already works well across much of our network).
We remain keen to talk with the RMT to try to avert strike action. We will keep you updated on the situation via the Greater Anglia website and social media.
These are the routes where we have conductors:
- Norwich to London, Cambridge, Lowestoft, Great Yarmouth, Sheringham
- Ipswich to Cambridge, Lowestoft, Felixstowe, Peterborough
- Marks Tey to Sudbury
- Manningtree to Harwich
- Clacton/Walton-on-the-Naze to Colchester