Sheffield among areas to be hit with major travel disruption as train strikes planned for this summer
Here’s how passengers in Sheffield will be affected by train strikes this month
Sheffield rail users are being warned to expect disruption later this month due to industrial action by the RMT union.
Members are planning to strike on Saturday, August, 8 and a week later on Saturday, August 15.
It’s two dates which will come at a hugely disruptive time as it coincides with the start of the 2026/27 for football fans of Sheffield United and Sheffield Wednesday - while it also comes during the school holidays where many will be travelling by train to family days out.
In a statement, East Midlands Railway (EMR) said: “Customers are being reminded that the RMT union has announced strike action on Saturday, 8 August and Saturday, 15 August.
“Customers are advised to only travel if their journey is essential and to check their full journey, including first and last trains, before travelling on these dates.”
On the strike days, EMR has confirmed that it will be operating a significantly reduced timetable starting at 07:00 and finishing before 19:00 on its Intercity and Connect routes.
To help maximise the number of seats available, EMR has also stated that it will temporarily declassify First Class on its Intercity services, allowing all customers to use the full seating capacity of each train. This temporary measure will apply only while the strike timetable is in operation.
First Class customers who already have tickets for the days affected are asked to contact customer service to discuss the process of claiming a refund.
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.
This comes amid engineering works on Saturday 8 and Sunday 9 August, with engineering works taking place on the Regional route between Liverpool Lime Street and Norwich, with trains not calling at Ilkeston, Langley Mill, Alfreton. There will be a significantly reduced service for Sheffield.
Philippa Cresswell, Customer Experience Director at East Midlands Railway, said: "We remain fully committed to offering a high-quality experience to those customers travelling with us.
"EMR continues to engage in constructive discussions with the RMT with a focus on resolving this dispute as quickly as possible."