Rail misery as hundreds of trains cancelled with staff choosing to watch England

Exclusive: Rail workers are choosing to watch England instead of working overtime, causing the cancellation of services across the country

Train companies have warned of delays with staff not required to work overtime on the day of the Euro 2024 final (PA)

Hundreds of Sunday trains have been cancelled across Britain as staff exercise their right not to work overtime on the day of the Euro 2024 final.

The leading intercity operator, GWR, is warning passengers: “Sickness and England reaching the final of the Euros are likely to reduce the number of colleagues available for overtime shifts.”

So bad is the disruption caused by train crew choosing to watch the Euro 2024 final between England and Spain that National Rail is warning passengers on the Great Western line linking London Paddington with South Wales and the West of England: “Do not travel after 6pm.”

Even though Sunday is now one of the busiest days on the railways, significant numbers of staff do not have Sundays in their normal working week.

Train operators rely on volunteers working overtime to run their full schedule.

For live updates on the build-up for the Euro 2024 final, click here

England fans are arriving in Berlin for the Euro 2024 final - but back home it has meant delays for rail passengers (Bradley Collyer/PA Wire)

GWR is warning “the number of cancellations could lead to a train every two hours” even on core lines linking London with Bristol.

“On the impacted routes, where trains are able to run they are expected to be very busy,” the rail firm said. GWR says tickets for Sunday 14 July will be valid on Monday 15 July.

In north west England, Northern has put out a “Do Not Travel” notice on six lines, mainly in and out of Manchester – with a warning of further very short notice cancellations on other routes.

A spokesperson for Northern, said: “We are actively managing higher levels of staff sickness – and on Sundays, which rely on crews volunteering to work additional hours, we have seen a reduction in train crew making themselves available on parts of the network.

“In addition, the ongoing industrial relations issues have their own impact. We are working hard with our colleagues and other train operators to improve service reliability.”

Northern is in public ownership – as is LNER, which has cancelled more than 20 intercity trains on Sunday with many others curtailed “due to a shortage of train crew”.

Some of the trains which are running are reported to be “full and standing” because of the extra passengers who are trying to squeeze on board.

All LNER trains are being delayed because of the need to make additional stops to compensate for the calling pattern of the cancelled trains.

LNER is offering passengers who are booked to travel after 6pm on Sunday the chance to defer their journey to Monday 15 July. Anyone who avails of the option must make a free seat reservation for their chosen trains.

In the West Midlands and on links between Birmingham, Northampton and London, London Northwestern Railway and West Midlands Railway warns: “Based on the current rostering forecasts, it is unfortunately likely that services will be disrupted on all routes.”

The transport secretary, Louise Haigh said: “Fourteen years without a workforce strategy has left our railways understaffed, reliant on voluntary working and lurching from one crisis to the next.

“Our urgent priority is to reset workforce relations and put passengers first.”

Separately, ScotRail is already operating a reduced timetable “to provide greater certainty and reliability for customers”.

The train operator, which is owned by the Scottish government, says: “This is a result of the ongoing impact of fewer train drivers than normal currently available for overtime or rest day working, as is their contractual right.

“Some rest day working and overtime is still needed to deliver a normal timetable. This has historically been the case in the railway and is replicated in other train operators across Britain.”