Southern Rail to take legal action against its drivers to stop strikes

The owners of Southern Rail will launch legal action against their train drivers tomorrow in a bid to halt ongoing strike action.

By The Newsroom

Published 6th Dec 2016, 16:43 BST

Updated 6th Dec 2016, 17:33 BST

Members of Aslef are due to walk out next week in a dispute over driver-only trains, which will halt all Southern services.

The company’s owners, Govia Thameslink Railway, will argue in the High Court that the strikes unlawfully restrict EU law freedoms.

In papers seen by the Press Association, the company cites Articles 49 and 56 to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union.

The company says no passengers will be able to travel on Southern services on at least the days affected by the strikes, affecting around 30,000 people travelling to and from Gatwick Airport every day.

Drivers have also began a ban on overtime, while the Rail, Maritime and Transport union is carrying out strikes due to a dispute over the role of conductors.

Hundreds of thousands of passengers are expected the biggest delays for years over the Christmas break because of the strikes.