Strike action affects trains to/from London St Pancras on Saturday 8 August and Saturday 15 August 2026.
The RMT union has announced strike action on Saturday 8 August and Saturday 15 August 2026. There will be a significantly reduced train service to/from London St Pancras with trains starting after 07:00 and finishing before 19:00 only. We advise you to check your full journey, including first and last trains, before travelling on these dates.
Please continue to check the EMR website, information at stations and social media for the latest advice and information.
In addition to strike action, the RMT has also notified EMR that members will be taking Action Short of Strike (ASOS), from Sunday 2 to Friday 7 August (inclusive), Sunday 9 to Friday 14 August (inclusive) and from Sunday 16 August until further notice. Trains may be subject to short notice alterations and cancellations. Please check before you travel.
Declassification of First Class during strike days
To help maximise the number of seats available during the strike days, EMR will temporarily declassify First Class on its Intercity services, allowing all customers to use the full seating capacity of each train. This applies to EMR services and isn’t applicable when the customer is travelling with an alternative operator.
This temporary measure will apply only while the strike timetable is in operation.
For compensation information, please see the FAQs below.
Strike Timetable - Saturday 8th August
EMR Intercity (to/from London St Pancras)
Services will start after 07:00 and finish before 19:00:
- One Train Per Hour between Nottingham and London St Pancras
- First departure - 07:12 Nottingham to London St Pancras
- Last departure - 16:12 Nottingham to London St Pancras
- One Train Per Hour between Sheffield/Derby and London St Pancras
- First departure from Derby - 07:32 Derby to London St Pancras
- First departure from Sheffield - 09:00 Sheffield to London St Pancras
- Last departure to London St Pancras - 16:00 Sheffield to London St Pancras
- One Train Per Hour between London St Pancras and Nottingham
- First departure - 08:05 London St Pancras to Nottingham
- Last departure - 16:05 London St Pancras to Nottingham
- One Train Per Hour between London St Pancras and Sheffield/Derby
- First departure - 07:32 London St Pancras to Sheffield
- Last departure to Sheffield - 15:32 London St Pancras to Sheffield
- Last departure to Derby - 17:05 London St Pancras to Derby
No Rail Replacement Bus services will be provided.
EMR Connect (to/from London St Pancras)
Services will start after 07:00 and finish before 19:00:
- One Train Per Hour between Corby and London St Pancras
- First departure - 08:10 Corby to London St Pancras
- Last departure - 17:10 Corby to London St Pancras
- One Train Per Hour between London St Pancras and Corby
- First departure - 07:45 London St Pancras to Corby
- Last departure - 16:45 London St Pancras to Corby
No Rail Replacement Bus services will be provided.
EMR Regional Services
EMR Regional services are not affected by the strike action.
Engineering works are taking place on Saturday 8 and Sunday 9 August between Liverpool Lime Street and Norwich with trains not calling at Ilkeston, Langley Mill, Alfreton and there will be a significantly reduced service for Sheffield.
For more information - Buses replace trains between Sheffield and Nottingham on Saturday 8 and Sunday 9 August
Customers are advised to check their full journey before travelling.
Travelling on other operator's services
Where possible, we will arrange for your ticket to be used at no extra cost on other operator's services to/from London. We will keep this page updated once arrangements have been confirmed with other operators.
Confirmed arrangements:
| EMR Journey | Alternative Route |
| Sheffield to/from London | Via Doncaster, using Northern/TransPennine Express services between Sheffield and Doncaster and LNER services between Doncaster and London EMR tickets are not valid on Hull Trains/Lumo services |
| Nottingham to/from London | Via Grantham, using EMR services between Nottingham and Grantham and LNER services between Grantham and London |
| Chesterfield to/from London | Via Tamworth, using CrossCountry services between Chesterfield and Tamworth and London Northwestern Railway and Avanti West Coast services between Tamworth and London |
| Derby to/from London | Via Tamworth, using CrossCountry services between Derby and Tamworth and London Northwestern Railway and Avanti West Coast services between Tamworth and London |
| Long Eaton to/from London | Via Tamworth, using CrossCountry services between Long Eaton and Tamworth and London Northwestern Railway and Avanti West Coast services between Tamworth and London |
| Leicester to/from London | Via Nuneaton, using CrossCountry services between Leicester and Nuneaton and London Northwestern Railway services between Nuneaton and London |
Travelling with LNER:
- Please use the seat reservation display screens inside of the coach to find an available seat. Seats with a green light marked “Available” are unreserved. Please note that this is a live system and LNER customers may book the seat after the train has departed and you may be required to find an alternative available seat.
- LNER trains are expected to be busy over the summer period, including weekends. Where the train is especially busy or formed of 5 coaches, you may be advised by LNER station teams to travel on a later, quieter service.
- Unfortunately EMR First Class tickets can only be in used in LNER Standard Class
Strike Timetable - Saturday 15th August
EMR Intercity (to/from London St Pancras)
Services will start after 07:00 and finish before 19:00:
- One Train Per Hour between Nottingham and London St Pancras
- First departure - 07:12 Nottingham to London St Pancras
- Last departure - 16:12 Nottingham to London St Pancras
- One Train Per Hour between Sheffield/Derby and London St Pancras
- First departure from Derby - 07:32 Derby to London St Pancras
- First departure from Sheffield - 09:00 Sheffield to London St Pancras
- Last departure to London St Pancras - 16:00 Sheffield to London St Pancras
- One Train Per Hour between London St Pancras and Nottingham
- First departure - 08:05 London St Pancras to Nottingham
- Last departure - 16:05 London St Pancras to Nottingham
- One Train Per Hour between London St Pancras and Sheffield/Derby
- First departure - 07:32 London St Pancras to Sheffield
- Last departure to Sheffield - 15:32 London St Pancras to Sheffield
- Last departure to Derby - 17:05 London St Pancras to Derby
No Rail Replacement Bus services will be provided.
EMR Connect (to/from London St Pancras)
Services will start after 07:00 and finish before 19:00:
- One Train Per Hour between Corby and London St Pancras
- First departure - 08:10 Corby to London St Pancras
- Last departure - 17:10 Corby to London St Pancras
- One Train Per Hour between London St Pancras and Corby
- First departure - 07:45 London St Pancras to Corby
- Last departure - 16:45 London St Pancras to Corby
No Rail Replacement Bus services will be provided.
EMR Regional Services
EMR Regional services are not affected by the strike action and will run normally.
Customers are advised to check their full journey before travelling.
Travelling on other operator's services
Where possible, we will arrange for your ticket to be used at no extra cost on other operator's services to/from London. We will keep this page updated once arrangements have been confirmed with other operators.
Confirmed arrangements:
| EMR Journey | Alternative Route |
| Sheffield to/from London | Via Doncaster, using Northern/TransPennine Express services between Sheffield and Doncaster and LNER services between Doncaster and London EMR tickets are not valid on Hull Trains/Lumo services |
| Nottingham to/from London | Via Grantham, using EMR services between Nottingham and Grantham and LNER services between Grantham and London |
| Chesterfield to/from London | Via Tamworth, using CrossCountry services between Chesterfield and Tamworth and London Northwestern Railway and Avanti West Coast services between Tamworth and London |
| Derby to/from London | Via Tamworth, using CrossCountry services between Derby and Tamworth and London Northwestern Railway and Avanti West Coast services between Tamworth and London |
| Long Eaton to/from London | Via Tamworth, using CrossCountry services between Long Eaton and Tamworth and London Northwestern Railway and Avanti West Coast services between Tamworth and London |
| Leicester to/from London | Via Nuneaton, using CrossCountry services between Leicester and Nuneaton and London Northwestern Railway services between Nuneaton and London |
Travelling with LNER:
- Please use the seat reservation display screens inside of the coach to find an available seat. Seats with a green light marked “Available” are unreserved. Please note that this is a live system and LNER customers may book the seat after the train has departed and you may be required to find an alternative available seat.
- LNER trains are expected to be busy over the summer period, including weekends. Where the train is especially busy or formed of 5 coaches, you may be advised by LNER station teams to travel on a later, quieter service.
- Unfortunately EMR First Class tickets can only be in used in LNER Standard Class
FAQs for strike days
If you hold a ticket for a strike day you can travel on a different day at no extra cost as per the guidance below:
- Tickets dated Saturday 1st August can be used to travel on EMR and connecting services* on Friday 31st July, Sunday 2nd August, Monday 3rd August or Tuesday 4th August
- Tickets dated Saturday 8th August can be used to travel on EMR and connecting services* on Friday 7th August, Sunday 9th August, Monday 10th August or Tuesday 11th August
- Tickets dated Saturday 15th August can be used to travel on EMR and connecting services* on Friday 14th August, Sunday 16th August, Monday 17th August or Tuesday 18th August
*Excludes connections with Grand Central, Heathrow Express, Hull Trains, Lumo.
Please note that EMR Intercity services will remain affected by timetable reductions on non-strike days. See the latest information about the reduced timetable here.
If you hold an Advance ticket for a strike day you can use it on alternative dates as outlined above without needing to change the date of your ticket. If you wish to change your ticket to another date outside of those listed above you can do so at the place of purchase. No administration fee will be applied however you may need to pay the difference between the price of your original ticket, and that of the new ticket.
Alternatively, if you no longer wish to travel you can claim a full refund at your point of purchase. No administration fee will be charged.
If you hold two Advance tickets (an outbound and a return) you can claim a refund for both legs if either of the legs is on one of the strike dates listed above.
If you purchased your ticket from EMR online, you can apply for your refund here. If you purchased your ticket from an EMR station, please return to the station within 28 days of the travel date for a refund. Find out more about applying for a refund.
If you purchased your ticket from another provider, you will need to approach them directly.
If your train is cancelled or you choose not to travel due to strike action, tickets can be changed to another date, or they can be returned for a full refund at your point of purchase. No administration fee will be charged.
If you purchased your ticket from EMR online, you can apply for your refund here. If you purchased your ticket from an EMR station, please return to the station within 28 days of the travel date for a refund. Find out more about applying for a refund.
If you purchased your ticket from another provider, you will need to approach them directly.
Alternatively, you are entitled to a fee-free change of journey if your train is cancelled, delayed or rescheduled after booking.
If you have a Season ticket (Flexi, monthly or longer) and you do not travel you can claim 100% compensation through Delay Repay for strike days.
To claim Delay Repay select 'strike action' on the claim form. Find out more about Delay Repay.
If you have a Flexi ticket and would normally travel on a date now affected by strike action or the overtime ban, you may choose to travel on an alternative date within the validity of your Flexi Season Ticket instead. If you choose not to travel, or cannot travel on an alternative date within your ticket's validity, you can activate a day's travel pass on your tickets then claim delay repay, selecting 'strike action' on the claim form. Find out more about Delay Repay.
Please note tickets not activated on the strike date will not be able to claim delay repay and will only be able to claim any unused tickets before the expiry date of the ticket under the usual terms and conditions.
Weekly season tickets which have not started yet can be refunded, a £10 admin fee may apply.
To make sure that a Weekly season ticket is the best value for you, if you’re unable to travel during industrial action use National Rail Enquiries handy season ticket calculator here .
If you have an unused Return ticket, or return journey formed of 2 single tickets, and do not/ cannot make your outward journey because of the strike, you are entitled to a refund on your journey, even if the return journey is not affected by a strike. The same will be true if the return journey is planned for a day affected by a strike but the outward is not.
EMR will still offer booked Passenger Assistance in line with their current policy of 2 hour booking window.
EMR will proactively contact customers who have booked assistance on the services that are affected and will be offered a refund or the chance to reschedule their journey. We expect that trains running on strike days/ overtime ban days to be extremely busy and crowded. Our team will be available to assist all customers during the affected dates. Find out more and discuss your options here.
Yes, you are entitled to partial compensation for your ticket. Just get in touch with EMR's Customer Service Centre and send us a copy of your ticket.
We can refund the money either to your bank account or via PayPal. If you'd prefer the refund to go to your bank account, please have your 8-digit account number and 6-digit sort code handy when you contact us.
Yes, you're entitled to a full refund if you no longer wish to travel.
If you purchased your ticket from EMR online, you can apply for your refund here. If you purchased your ticket from an EMR station, please return to the station within 28 days of the travel date for a refund. Find out more about applying for a refund.
If you purchased your ticket from another provider, you will need to approach them directly.
If you no longer wish to travel, customers who purchased their tickets from another retailer should contact them directly.
Yes, food and drink will be available to purchase in Standard Class. There will be no First Class catering service on strike dates.