We are currently on a trip to England with a group of 10 family members. We are staying near Windsor. We had planned to use the train to travel into London and a few day trips. Unfortunately there is a railway strike and we are not sure how to get around without train access. Especially for a group of 10 and also we have one small child that needs to be in a car seat. Are there any driving services that you recommend?
Posted by
Lake District, England
8135 posts
There is only one day when GWR will not be running trains from Windsor- 6 April.
On all other days a normal service is operating, the overtime ban is not expected to have a material effect on service levels on any GWR route
On 6 April you could normally use the alternative South Western Trains service from Windsor and Eton Riverside to London Waterloo- unlike the route via Slough it is a no change route (takes a bit longer, but gets you closer in to central London), and runs longer trains. It is the route which Rick doesn't tell you about. However there are rail replacement buses that day from Windsor to Hounslow due to engineering work.
So make that your Windsor and Runnymede day- maybe take a boat trip on the Thames, explore the town and it's twin town of Eton. Make that the day you visit the Castle. Or explore Windsor Great Park.
Although it may not work for such a large party there is also the hourly double decker bus to London Victoria- it only takes just over an hour to get there, and gives you a different vista than the train.
It is also possible to take frequent buses to Heathrow Terminal 5 then the tube or Elizabeth Line into London.
Posted by
Preston UK
1232 posts
If Hampton Court is of interest (and it should be) you could use 6th April to visit there also.
Posted by
Oxford, United Kingdom
5466 posts
There is engineering work on 6 April between Paddington & Reading so there will be no GWR trains running at all on that route anyway.
Posted by
Lake District, England
8135 posts
According to GWR there is NOT engineering work between Paddington and Reading on 6 April, and the Elizabeth Line is running a half hourly service between Paddington and Reading.
However GWR were not planning to operate any main line trains to any destination that day. Oxford is a shuttle service only from Reading connecting with the Elizabeth Line.
This is a change from previous strike days when GWR have run main line trains
The South West Trains timetable from Windsor and Eton Riverside is now live in the journey planners for all the overtime ban days and for their strike day on 8 April.