A significant railway operator in the Midlands is bracing for industrial action during the upcoming bank holiday weekend.

West Midlands Railway, which normally operates services between Birmingham and London as well as routes heading north from Birmingham, anticipates substantial strike activity.

Due to walkouts by employees affiliated with a transport union, an extremely reduced timetable will be in place from Friday, May 22 through Saturday, May 23.

All services will cease after 7pm on Friday, with operations resuming later than usual on Saturday.

Lines operating a restricted timetable encompass Lichfield Trent Valley to Redditch, Wolverhampton to Walsall, and Rugeley Trent Valley to Birmingham International.

Services between Oxford and Birmingham operated by Chiltern or Cross Country remain unaffected by the strikes, though passenger numbers are expected to be high.

Travellers from Oxford heading to Stratford-upon-Avon, Nuneaton, Hereford or Kidderminster may encounter considerable delays, as these connecting services are normally provided by West Midlands Railway.

London Northwestern Railway (LNR), which shares the same operator, is also facing severe disruption throughout the weekend.

Routes connecting Birmingham with London and Birmingham with Liverpool will operate with reduced frequency.

All other LNR services will be completely suspended.

Great Western Railway, Chiltern Railways, Cross Country and Avanti West Coast have no industrial action scheduled.

The industrial action is being organised by the Transport Salaried Staffs’ Association, one of Britain’s longest-established rail unions with representatives employed at various railway companies.