Tag Archives: Rail

Most rail services ground to a halt across Wales as 50,000 rail and tube workers walked out across the UK against government plans to cut jobs and services and a failure to agree a pay rise that maintained the cost of living. At Cardiff Central station over 70 workers from all over the trade union movement gathered in support of ...

Defend the right to strike 50,000 rail and tube workers in RMT transport union are standing shoulder to shoulder in historic national strike action, joined by other union members in some areas. Rail workers kept going throughout the pandemic, making sure other key workers could get to work. The least they, and the rest of us, deserve is an inflation-proof ...

By Jaime Davies Two years and six months ago we tragically lost a brilliant comrade and a wonderful friend, Socialist Party member Bethan Roper. Our loss, both personally and on the battlefield of class struggle, is still difficult and painful to come to terms with. Her family, friends and comrades will always feel it, and will continue to press for ...

By Dave Reid and Alec Thraves Welsh Labour has won the Welsh parliament election with an increased vote and seats. Mark Drakeford’s government benefited from the “incumbency factor” and actually increased its number of seats in the Senedd to 30, half of the 60 seats. This was despite polls at the beginning of the Covid crisis indicating that it would ...

Republication of an article from October 23 2020. Train operations were transferred to state-owned Transport For Wales earlier this month. By Dave Reid The Wales and Border rail franchise will effectively be nationalised in February as franchise holding company Keolis Amey (KA) walks away from its contract. The collapse of ticket sales in the Covid crisis has led to huge ...

By Dave Reid The Wales and Border rail franchise will effectively be nationalised in February as franchise holding company Keolis Amey (KA) walks away from its contract. The collapse of ticket sales in the Covid crisis has led to huge losses for the conglomerate and so the company will hand over the train operating services to publicly-owned Transport For Wales. ...

By Ross Saunders The Rail Accident Investigation Branch (RAIB) published its report this week on the death of Beth Roper, who died in an accident on a train near Bristol last December. The report has been anticipated by many in South Wales: Beth’s tragic death at just 28 was a great loss to her family, her numerous friends and the ...

By Ross Saunders Train fleet maintenance workers in the RMT union are celebrating in South Wales after scoring what looks like a complete victory without having to fire a shot. With a turnout of 80%, 98% of members voted in favour of strike action, sending an unignorable message to franchise-holder Transport for Wales Rail Services (TfW RS) that worker would ...

By Ross Saunders RMT members in train fleet maintenance in Wales are planning to begin industrial action this June against a threat to their job security, pensions, pay and terms and conditions. A resounding 98% voted in favour of strike action on an 80% turnout, which should give confidence to union members everywhere that with the right approach it is ...

By Dave Reid The Welsh government has announced, with great fanfare, handing the new £5 billion Wales and Borders rail franchise to multinational corporation KeolisAmey. Not only has it re-privatised the operating franchise – it has handed over the tracks and stations too Under the current franchise, Arriva Trains has been running the Welsh rail system into the ground. With ...