West Midlands Railway has suspended two days of planned strike action set for Friday and Saturday of the week starting July 29, 2026, after negotiations with the TSSA trade union. The cancellation prevents anticipated disruptions to rail services across the West Midlands region.
The strike was called over a dispute concerning payments for rest day working. Earlier strike action by TSSA members reduced services on July 11 and 12 across the same network. The recent suspension follows further talks intended to resolve this pay issue.
Affected locations and routes
Train services in Birmingham, Black Country, Wolverhampton, Warwickshire, Shropshire, Herefordshire, Worcestershire, and Staffordshire were potentially
affected. The impacted routes included the Cross City line from Lichfield Trent Valley to Redditch and Bromsgrove, Wolverhampton to Walsall, and Rugeley Trent Valley to Birmingham International. Additional routes covered were all services via Birmingham Snow Hill, the Camp Hill line, Nuneaton to Leamington Spa, and Birmingham New Street to Hereford and Shrewsbury.
Impact on passengers and services
With the strike action suspended, West Midlands Railway confirmed a full service will run according to the normal timetable throughout the affected weekend. This avoids delays and cancellations that would have impacted passengers travelling across multiple counties and key routes within the West Midlands network.
Official response
West Midlands
Railway expressed satisfaction with the strike suspension due to the potential disruption it would have caused to customers. The company emphasized that the decision followed productive discussions with the TSSA union aimed at addressing the dispute over rest day working payments.
