Many Londoners expected a comprehensive shutdown across the whole Tube network, but were surprised to see some stretches remain open during strike action
The Northern line is running in its entirety today (Tuesday, September 9) despite London Underground strikes crippling the network. One of the busiest Tube lines, which runs from Morden and Battersea Power Station to Edgware and High Barnet has been operating since rush hour with only minor disruption.
Transport for London (TfL) said this is down to enough non-RMT staff turning up despite the industrial action which is set to hit the Tube network until 8am on Friday (September 12). A spokesperson added: “It will be a day-to-day situation with the network, it will depend what we are able to operate based on who is at work, so it would not be accurate to say this will happen on any other day. We will continue putting as much of the network into use as we possibly can based on the number of staff that are at work.”
MyLondon understands the number of service controllers on strike is a key factor on whether a specific Tube line can run or not. Similar to the role of an air traffic controller, they play an essential part in regulating train movements, communicating with staff and customers during disruptions and running signalling systems.
On Tuesday, enough Northern line service controllers turned up for work which means it’s been able to run almost as normal. The same goes for part of the Piccadilly line which is running in West London today between Rayners Lane and Hammersmith. Parts of the Central, Metropolitan and Northern line were running yesterday, although this only benefitted small parts of the city.
A Freedom of Information request from 2020 revealed at the time there were 77 service controller roles on the London Underground working across four depots. Salaries for the role in 2022 were between £65k and £80k according to a later FOI request, although this amount may have increased more recently.
Earlier today Transport expert Simon Calder said trains are running at 10 minute intervals across the whole line, although some Central London stations may be skipped.
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