Here’s How To Get Around London During Today’s Tube Strike

There’s a tube strike this week, folks! Get ready a day of disruptions on the Tube as another mass w is taking place on Thursday, November 10.

Here’s all the info you need to know about the strike, and how to navigate your way across London Town:

London Tube strike

Why is there a strike?

The dispute between the RMT Union and TfL is over planned job cuts and proposed changes to pension schemes.

RMT General Secretary Mick Lynch said: “TfL have missed a golden opportunity to make progress in these negotiations and avoid strike action on Thursday.

“Our members are resolute in their determination to see a just settlement to this jobs and pensions dispute. And they will continue their industrial campaign for as long as it takes.

“TfL need to start making compromises and work with the union to reach a deal that works for staff and avoids further disruption to the lives of passengers.”

Around 10,000 workers on the tube are walking out on Thursday, November 10 for 24-hours.

Which services are affected by the strike?

Strike action is planned to be across the entire tube network today. It’s may have some knock-on effects for lines including the London Overground, DLR and Elizabeth line, such as sudden cancellations.

TfL said: “There are strikes planned on the Tube. There will be limited or no Tube services running. Other services will run, but may be extremely busy or subject to last-minute changes.”

How many days is the strike?

The strike will take place on November 10 for the tubes, but knock-on effects will likely find the effects continuing on throughout to the next day.

Three days of 24-hour rail strike action (on November 5, 7 and 9) was planned for this week, but was eventually called off after good faith talks, so the Tube strike is the sole day of strike action this week.

Commuters are advised to stay home if possible. Otherwise, they’re advised to check line statuses before travelling, plan their journey, and travel after mid-morning on the days following strike action.

Are Overground and DLR services affected by the train strike?

The London Overground and DLR lines are still due to run on November 10, but expect to be far more crowded than usual, with sudden cancellations also possible due to disruption from the Tube strike.

Is the Elizabeth line running?

Yes, the Elizabeth line is due to run on November 10, but it will also be far busier than usual and susceptible to disruption.

Are the buses running?

Buses are running, but will likely be much busier that usual as strikes push more passengers onto alternative means of transport.

How else can I get around London?

The Santander Cycles are available for hire as usual, although it might be a little trickier than usual to grab a bike as more and more people will be using them. There’s also Dott, HumanForest, Lime Bikes, TIER, Swapfiets as well as those handy little e-scooters available for hire across London.

River boat services – like Uber Boat – will also be running so you can add some river views to your commute if you’d like.

If you’re relying on the power of walking to get around, you can refer to this nifty map, which shows the number of steps between each tube station.

Finally, London’s fleet of black cabs and ride-hailing services (such as Bolt and Uber) are all running, though we suspect there might be some surge pricing happening on the apps as demand for rides increase. Good luck out there!

Also published on Medium.