Stuck in traffic: Highway workers and Border Force to strike in London
The winter of discontent is set to continue this week, with both traffic officers and Border Force staff planning to strike, causing travel havoc on the roads and in the air.
National Highways South East Regional Control Centre in Godstone, 20mi south of London, will hold strikes on 22 December between 12:00 and 3:30 pm.
Industrial action started on Friday 16 December in the northwest of England, with London and the southeast set to see protests between 22 and 25 December.
This equates to roughly 125 out of 1,500 frontlines operational staff, or between 10 and 25 people per region, National Highways suggest.
Duncan Smith, executive director of operations at National Highways said: “We’ve reviewed the impact that the PCS strikes may have and are confident our well-rehearsed resilience plans mean we can continue to manage and operate our network safely”.
“Millions of people rely on our roads and there is a possibility that they may be busier than usual on strike days, particularly when they correspond with industrial action on other transport modes. We’d urge drivers to take extra care during the cold weather and in the run-up to Christmas when our network is always busier”, he said.
The Greater London area will not only be at the mercy of National HIghways’ protests but members of the Border Force have opted to strike at airports on 23 December.
Gatwick Airport, A23 Bus stop, opposite Ashdown House will be impacted between 8 – 10 am and at Heathrow Aiport, bus stops for Nene Roundabout, Bath Road and Customs house will not be in service during the same time.
Passengers may be expected to wait on their planes before entering the UK, as immigration times are set to increase by over an hour.
National Highways and Border force employees join 1.3m workers along with ambulance drivers, nurses, rail staff and driving examiners to protest for higher wages amid the cost of living crisis.
On Friday night the Cabinet Office confirmed that 1,200 Armed Forces personnel would replace ambulance drivers and Border Force workers this week, costing Government an estimated £5.6 million per week, the Telegraph suggests.