As resigned Southern commuters either stayed home or negotiated a train service that was cut by almost half, there appeared little prospect of an early end to the five-day strike that began on Monday morning on one of Britain’s busiest rail franchises.

Southern’s operating company, Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR), said about 90% of the much-reduced timetable ran to schedule in the morning peak, a better performance than many ordinary days in recent weeks. But bosses reiterated their determination to force through changes that have led unions to strike.

While some commuters experienced extreme overcrowding on trains that were running, other services and many stations were quieter, suggesting that many people had not attempted to travel into London by train on Monday.



The strike will run until Friday night in an escalating dispute over the role of conductors. The Rail, Maritime and Transport union said it still remained available for meaningful negotiations, but believes an agreement with GTR similar to the deal reached in Scotland was blocked by the Department for Transport as talks collapsed near a conclusion at Acas last Friday.

An emergency timetable is in place, with Southern saying it will run 60% of normal services, rather than the 85% it has been running since last month in an attempt to provide a more accurate timetable. Some areas of Sussex will have no trains at all.

RMT members formed picket lines at rail depots, and at London Victoria and Brighton stations.

The union’s general secretary, Mick Cash, said he shared the frustration of passengers, but added: “This action has been forced on us by the arrogance and inaction of Govia Thameslink and the government, who have made it clear that they have no interest in resolving this dispute or in tackling the daily chaos on Southern.

“Our fight is with the company and the government, who have dragged this franchise into total meltdown.”

GTR said it had offered new assurances on jobs to the union, but that the company was pressing ahead with plans to change the role of conductors this month. Its chief executive, Charles Horton, said the strike was “completely unacceptable, unjustified and unnecessary”.

“We want to run new and modern trains to provide more space and capacity, and we want to make essential changes to how we operate, including giving our drivers responsibility for closing train doors, so that onboard staff can focus on helping you during your journey,” he said in a message to passengers.

The prime minister, Theresa May, sharply criticised RMT leaders. Her official spokeswoman said: “The prime minister strongly condemns the strike action. It is only going to cause more disruption and misery for passengers. We are disappointed to see that union bosses are overlooking the impact that they are having on the public.” She added: “We obviously want to see this situation resolved.”

Asked whether May might back calls for GTR to be stripped of the Southern franchise because of the persistent shortcomings in the service, the spokeswoman said: “It’s not as simple or straightforward as saying there’s one answer or one solution. You would have to think carefully about whether that would create more uncertainty.”

May’s spokeswoman denied that the government had a responsibility to step in and resolve the dispute, saying it had to be settled between the company and unions.

Labour blamed the government for the strike. Andy McDonald, the shadow transport secretary, said: “The country’s biggest rail franchise is failing. Passengers are enduring the worst delays in the country, fares are up 25% and promised investment looks further away than ever, yet the Tory government seems more interested in pursuing an ideological dust-up with rail unions than improving abysmal passenger services.”

With services cancelled, London Victoria station, Southern’s main terminus, was also quieter than usual on Monday morning. Just a few hundred commuters stood waiting as the public address system announced cancellation after cancellation “due to a shortage of train crew”.

Arriving on the 7.54am train from Brighton, which was six minutes late, Steve Mansfield was hurrying to work after catching the service at Haywards Heath. “There’s nothing to London Bridge so I’m here,” he said. “It’s another half hour at least … We’re all absolutely bloody fed up with it to the back teeth.”

Brandishing his travel card, he said: “It’s a bargain for three and a half thousand quid or whatever.”

Memi Galiatsatou, a treasury analyst from Worthing, West Sussex, said: “I had to take the bus to get to Brighton. I paid £7 for a return ticket on top of my normal fare.” Asked about the industrial dispute, she said: “I think it’s ridiculous. It’s been two and a half months now. It’s getting out of hand. Someone has to do something about it.”

Martin Simms said he was forced to stand all the way from Three Bridges, West Sussex, on his journey into Victoria. Unions and management had performed poorly, he said. “They shouldn’t inconvenience the public as much as they have done. It’s taken too long. We are suffering.”

Other commuters reported a better journey than usual. James Aitchison, 43, a publisher who commutes from Haywards Heath to Victoria and caught the 8.33am Gatwick Express, said he had a dream journey, with a quiet station and a few spare seats on the train.

“The train got to Victoria on time, despite idling for several minutes at Gatwick airport and Clapham Junction, which is just a reflection of the bloated journey times in the official timetables to increase the chances of trains arriving on time,” he said.

In some suburban stations, however, overcrowding was apparently far worse than usual. Jonathan Ricketts, 34, a commuter from Reigate in Surrey, said: “The 7.11am is absolutely packed … A couple travelling in together are split as one gets on but the other can’t fit on. Thirty-eight minutes is going to feel a very, very long time before I get off.”

A sign informs passengers of the industrial action at Peckham Rye station. Photograph: Carl Court/Getty Images

The evening rush hour could prove more disruptive for commuters, with services limited even if they run smoothly, user groups said. The passengers’ group for the Redhill and Reigate district in Surrey, one of the worst affected by the disruption, said the RMT and the company were holding users in contempt.

The group’s spokesman, Stephen Trigg, said: “Rail users are again going to find total failure in trying to go about their daily lives. Last trains this week to Redhill are around 7pm … All in all, another heavy slap in the face for the poor, tired and frustrated commuters.”

Speaking at the picket line at Victoria, the RMT’s regional organiser for the south-east, Paul Cox, said: “I do agree with the majority of the public now, it’s important that this company is removed from the franchise and a new operator brought in. We can get on with providing a safe, efficient service that people in the south-east deserve.”

Planned industrial action in Scotland was called off last week after Abellio ScotRail agreed to renegotiate the role of guards in a similar dispute. Cox said: “Why is it good enough for an agreement in Scotland and have it rejected in the south-east? What is the rationale for that? Different executives.”

But Horton told the BBC that GTR was adamant it would be starting moves later this month to phase out conductors and bring in planned onboard supervisors, with drivers responsible for closing the doors. “We will be making that change … It will move things forward,” he said.



Heeding calls for him or his company to quit would simply leave the franchise leaderless and delay improvements for passengers, he said. “We have been talking about this change for nine months. The RMT have set their face against modernisation.”

Politicians on all sides have called for Southern to be stripped of the franchise, although many have also strongly criticised the RMT. Huw Merriman, a member of the transport select committee and the MP for the badly affected Bexhill and Battle constituency in East Sussex, who commutes on Southern, said he believed the action was unjustified.

He added, however: “This situation has become so serious that I believe the Department for Transport should join the negotiations to assess if they can make a commitment to onboard staffing levels beyond the end of the current Southern franchise.”

The week-long strike comes shortly before annual fare rises are revealed. Unless ministers intervene, fares are due to go up by the retail price index inflation rate, published on 16 August, which is likely to add another £65 to annual season tickets from Brighton to London.

Campaigners have demanded that Southern fares be frozen in recognition of the disruption. An announcement on further compensation is also expected from the government.