Is the Tube strike still on? TfL warns RMT union it has 24 hours to back down to avert travel chaos in London
London Underground has made a last-minute plea for Tube strikes to be called off ahead of walkouts by thousands of workers which will cause travel chaos in the capital.
Members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT), including drivers, signallers and maintenance workers, are to launch a series of strikes over pay and conditions which will cause huge disruption to services next week. Transport for London (TfL) has warned there will be few or no services between Monday and Thursday, with some disruption on Sunday.
Transport for London told The Standard that unless the union backs down and suspends its walkout threat by “D-day” on Friday night, disruption to services is inevitable from Sunday evening. TfL has offered a 3.4% pay rise which it described as “fair” and said it cannot afford to meet the RMT’s demand for a cut in the working week. Nick Dent, London Underground’s director of customer operations, said it was not too late to call off the strikes.
He told the PA news agency that LU had made a “fair” pay offer, without any conditions attached, which he urged the RMT to put to a ballot of its members. Union demands for a cut in the 35-hour week were “simply unaffordable” and would cost hundreds of millions of pounds.
He said: “We have met four times in the past two weeks and we would welcome further talks. It is not too late to call off the strikes and put our offer to the RMT members.”
The last Tube-wide strike was three years ago, over pay and pensions, but Mr Dent said next week’s action will be different because separate groups of workers will walk out on different days. “It will be very damaging for us,” he added.
Passengers have been urged to check before they travel, with Tubes that do run, as well as buses, which are expected to be busier than usual. Docklands Light Railway services will also be hit next Tuesday and Thursday because of a strike by RMT members in a separate pay dispute.
- From Sunday 7 to Thursday 11 September 2025, Tube services will be severely disrupted, with little to no service expected
- Any services that do run between Monday 8 and Friday 12 September will start later than usual with no service before 08:00
- On Tuesday 8 and Thursday 11 September 2025, there will also be no service on the DLR
If you are in London on those dates the Overground, buses, and the Elizabeth line will still be running throughout this period. They might be more busy than usual, but there shouldn’t be any changes to their timetables unless previously specified.