Council calls for end to disruptive rail strikes

The letters follow the passing of a Motion at a Council meeting on 24 July 2023 to call for an end to disruption for users of railway services in the Harborough district caused by an on-going dispute over pay and conditions with recognised Trade Unions.

In his letters, Cllr Knowles, Leader of Harborough District Council, said: “Our district is served by East Midlands Railway, who, in advance of each period of industrial action, warn our residents that there will be train cancellations and that they should check their train is running before travelling. The impact of the industrial action is that our residents have to resort to cars and coaches instead of trains, or they simply cannot complete their journeys. This particularly has an impact upon those who have to travel to work or education and also on the hospitality and tourism industry. The government has invested in our local railway station and the Midland Mainline is being electrified both of which are welcomed; however this work is being undermined by the ongoing industrial action. People making alternative arrangements for travel may not return to the railway.

“The Council believes that this ongoing and serious disruption to the rail travelling public has now gone on long enough and our residents, communities and businesses in the Harborough district are being seriously adversely affected.”