RAIL strikes caused misery for commuters, motorists and businesses in York yesterday - and services were set to be hit again today.

Around 80 per cent of train services across the country were cancelled yesterday (Tuesday, June 21) after some 40,000 staff members at Network Rail and 13 train operators walked out over disputes regarding pay, jobs and working conditions.

The strikes will continue on Thursday and Saturday - but the impact of yesterday's action was still set to be felt today (Wednesday, June 22).

Walkouts by signallers and control room staff who would usually work overnight from Tuesday night into this morning mean trains will leave depots later than normal, delaying the start of services, it was warned.

York Press: railstrike

Kate Swift, owner of shoe shop Angela Bare in Clifford Street, York, told The Press yesterday that the strike had hit her business.

She said: “Its been really quiet. Footfall is down as we rely on tourists - we've only had two customers in all day.

“Instead of just taking the train into work I’ve had to fill up my car and drive then get a bus into work as I can’t afford to park in York. It's been an utter nightmare as the traffic has been heavier.

“I do agree with the strikes, but this is after Covid and the lockdowns - we were hoping to expand this year but we can’t guarantee the income.”

Two tourists in York yesterday were Canadians Susan Mitchell and Owen Williams, who told The Press that after a few days in York they are due to catch the train to London today.

York Press: Canadian tourists Susan Mitchell and Owen Williams were hoping to travel to London today. Picture: Mike Laycock

However station staff had warned them that despite it being a non-strike day, travelling could be worse due to the limited trains because of extra numbers of passengers who had opted to defer their journey by a day.

The train operators which operate in York and are affected by the strikes -LNER, Northern Trains, Transpennine Express and CrossCountry Rail - were able to run a skeleton service yesterday, running a train approximately every hour from 9.30am to 5pm.

However Northern and Transpennine both told The Press that their advice remained not to travel.

A spokesperson for TransPennine said: “We have only been able to operate a very small percentage of our usual services as a result of RMT strike action.

“The majority of our managed stations, including Malton, Scarborough, Seamer and Selby in North Yorkshire, closed with no rail services. Continued strike action by the rail union will cause disruption to rail services across the remainder of this week and we are asking customers to only travel if absolutely essential.”

RMT Union claims rail staff have not had a pay increase in the past three years.

They say the government has stipulated that rail companies self finance pay rises, but employers say they can’t without redundancies.

Following unsuccessful negotiations with the Rail Industry Railway Group, they made the decision to take industrial action.

Rachael Maskell, Labour MP for York Central, yesterday said: “I stand with our rail workers who have been left with no choice but to strike this week.

“Having talked to rail staff in York, their low pay means that the cost of living and housing crises are significantly impacting on them and their families.

“When others were furloughed it was our transport and public sector workers who went to work and kept our country running; they were promised a pay rise, and are now getting a real terms cut.

“Commuters should be angry at the inconvenience they have faced today, not with rail workers but the Government who have walked away from their responsibility for giving the rail bosses the ability to settle this dispute.”

Sam Oldfield, a train spotter from Tadcaster said: “I booked the day off so I could spend today train spotting at York Station, so I was really disappointed to hear about the strike.

“I think it's really unfair of the drivers to do this – clearly no thought given to people like me.

“I really enjoy my days at the station so I’ve found this whole thing very upsetting.”