Night Tube services in London will be disrupted again this weekend, as drivers strike in a dispute over new rosters.

Transport for London (TfL) has warned people that journeys on the Central and Victoria lines may be “severely disrupted” from 7pm on Friday and Saturday evening.

Walkouts by Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union members will take place on those lines for eight hours.

Why are drivers striking?

The union is disputing rosters that they say have been imposed without agreement, with the Night Tube’s return only recently announced after 20 months closed.

London Underground (LU) insists drivers will only be required to work up to four night shift weekends a year, and that they have the option of swapping shifts with colleagues.

There will also be no job losses and drivers can stay part-time if desired, LU says.

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But RMT general secretary Mick Lynch said that the strike action was due to LU rejecting an offer on Tuesday.

Mr Lynch said: “They are now prolonging a dispute that will cost them more than settling because their managers have made a series of errors and don’t want to admit it publicly.”

Travel advice for this weekend

Nick Dent, LU’s director of customer operations, has apologised to customers for the disruption, urging them to check before travelling on the Victoria and Central lines.

“Consider using buses where possible,” he advised.

Post-pandemic travel

The Night Tube’s return was announced in October, having been suspended since March 2020 at the start of the coronavirus pandemic.

It was meant to be back from 27 November, in time for the busy Christmas period.

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“We know this is the last thing London needs at the moment as it tries to recover from the pandemic,” said Mr Dent.

There are already concerns that the government’s new Plan B measures will result in lower footfall on public transport because of the work from home guidance.

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