Help Understanding the October 2024 Train Strikes

This post from a few days ago may help. Note the link within to a list of protected trains by number. https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/italy/train-strike-october-12th-13th-2024

If you are still confused, perhaps stop by the train station with your list of trains to get some assistance.

This post from a few days ago may help. Note the link within to a list
of protected trains by number.
https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/italy/train-strike-october-12th-13th-2024

If you are still confused, perhaps stop by the train station with your
list of trains to get some assistance.

Hi Laura,
I took a look at that list, and it looks like it's only for Trenitalia and it's only listing trains traveling in the South. I'm traveling on Italo Train and my first train is from Milan to Florence, 2nd one is from Florence to Rome, 3rd one is from Rome to Naples (and back), 4th one is from Rome to Turin, and the last one is from Turin to Milan. Does this mean that Italo has no guaranteed trains and only trains traveling in the South have guaranteed trains?

No, Italo has its own web page with its own guaranteed trains. Also, you are never taking the train for its whole itinerary, but on the pages each train is quoted from start to end of run. Maybe you should check the train number on your tickets.

No, Italo has its own web page with its own guaranteed trains. Also, you are never taking the train for its whole itinerary, but on the Italo page each train is quoted from start to end of run. Maybe you should check the train number on your tickets.

Hi lachera,

Yes, I'm aware that I would not be taking the train for it's entirety. Do you know where I would find this information? I've been trying to look on Italo's website, but I haven't found anything. I saw they have a real time tracker, but that does not help since it only works for today's train schedule. I want to plan ahead so I'm not scrambling the day of my train to figure out another plan.

You're right, even by looking directly in Italian, I can find lists of Italo guaranteed trains only for past strikes and not for the forthcoming ones.

October 13 is a strike date, apparently affecting Italo trains as well. But no one knows much about it. You can see advice to someone else here:

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/italy/train-strike-october-12th-13th-2024

The symbols you see on the left hand side of the page for each entry on the strike page are the abbreviated names of the unions who are striking.
What is not clear is how many members each of the two unions involved have in each train company, and what their jobs are.
They may be station staff or cleaners or some other role apart from train drivers or guards.

It is also an unknown how many of those members will actually strike.

That is why the train companies themselves current!y believe that they will run a full service on 12 and 13 October.

It may be the day before, or even day of, when the picture becomes clear, or even if it turns out to be something of a non event.

The press accounts, designed to sell newspapers and drive website clicks are full of scare stories. But even those say 'may' be disruption as opposed to 'will be'.

Here is the list of Italo guaranteed trains for Oct. 12th and 13th, just published. Check the train numbers; for example trains Torino to Bari and Torino to Reggio Calabria run almost all the lenght of Italy and include many shorter itineraries like Milan to Rome.

https://www.italotreno.com/~/media/Images/content/pdf/sciopero/2024/Lista-garantiti_121024

Where can I find guaranteed trains for October 18th? I will be in Sicily.

October 18 is a local transportation strike aimed at city buses, trams and metro trains. The hours of the strike will vary from city to city. Trenitalia’s trains ( and Italo’s ) are not part of the strike and should run as scheduled.

The nationwide 24- hour train strike beginning October 12 and ending on October 13 is expected to impact trains of Trenitalia. Italotreno, Trenord and other train operators throughout Italy..

A post above by isn@31c erroneously states “the train companies themselves believe they will run a full schedule on October 12 & 13.”
That is not accurate, and it is not information the train companies are publishing. In fact—as lachera indicates— just today Italotreno published its list of Guaranteed trains scheduled to run on October 12 and 13. It indicates not all Italo trains will be operating during the strike.

Kenko,

At the time of writing that statement it was. If you look at Trenitalia now they still have apparently all trains on sale for 13 October, or at least a huge number of trains.
If they knew specifics presumably they would take the trains off sale.
There is now a generic strike page for 12 to 13 October with a generic list of guaranteed trains for any strikes happening between June and December this year. Little or nothing from Trenitalia yet which is actually date specific.

Thank you

@ isn31c, Trenitalia does not stop selling train tickets for days when unions have filed advance notice of a strike with the government. The train tickets for all trains continue to be sold on Trenitalia’s website notwithstanding a strike notice being filed.
If Trenitalia’s policy was that trains are required to be cancelled once a strike notice is filed by the unions, then all the unions would have to do to force the company to settle with them is file a strike notice covering an entire month or two. Unsold tickets would create a solvency problem, and also create chaos throughout Italy’s transportation network.
On the day of the strike, Trenitalia will evaluate how many rail employees have reported to work and which classification of work they perform. Sometimes supervisors are able to fill in for certain jobs during a strike. It’s only after the company has a head count of its work force and knows which workers they are that they then start cancelling trains.

Except for the “ guaranteed trains,” the uncertainty of which trains will actually run as scheduled and which ones get cancelled/delayed is why even pre-scheduled strikes have an impact. Until the day of the strike, a passenger can never be certain if the train they hold a ticket for will actually run.