Train strikes: How the ASLEF overtime ban will affect Hampshire including journeys from Portsmouth, Havant and Fareham

Railway commuters are facing disruption this week due to the latest round of industrial action by members of a transport union.
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ASLEF, known as “the train drivers’ union”, has banned its members from working overtime between Monday, August 7 and Saturday, August 12 resulting in changes and cancellations to train services across the country. Locally, all Southern Rail and South Western Railway routes will be affected by the “action short of strike.”

A statement on the Southern website said: “An amended timetable with fewer services will run during this time. Services will be busier than usual, especially in peak hours.

Passengers are facing disruption this week.Passengers are facing disruption this week.
Passengers are facing disruption this week.
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“It is likely you will need to queue and may not be able to board your chosen service. You should allow extra time to complete your journey.

“An amended timetable with fewer services will run during this time. Services will be busier than usual, especially in peak hours.

“It is likely you will need to queue and may not be able to board your chosen service. You should allow extra time to complete your journey.”

Coastal services - particularly between Portsmouth and Brighton - will be reduced and commuters will notice busier carriages during peak travel times.

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Services between Brighton and Portsmouth & Southsea via Littlehampton and Brighton and Portsmouth Harbour via Littlehampton are reduced to one train per hour.

The move comes as a continuation of a long-running pay dispute between the union and train companies.

A statement from ASLEF said: “The ban which will seriously disrupt services as none of the train companies employs enough drivers to deliver the services they have promised passengers, and the government, they will run. That’s why they are dependent on rest day working, as it is called in the railway industry, which of course is voluntary, and, by agreement, and is a system in place properly to be used for the purposes of training, rather than plugging holes in their rosters.”

The full details of disruption to Southern Rail services is available here while Great Western Railway customers should check here for updates ahead of their journeys. The overtime ban has already affected many people’s summer plans, such as those attempting to travel to Brighton Pride last weekend.