The RMT is to stage protest strikes at East Midlands Railway on the first three Saturdays in August as the operator continues to struggle with problems affecting its fleet of new Class 810 Aurora trains, built by Hitachi.

EMR has cut back its intercity and regional services so that the number of trains available matches the advertised service more closely, with the intention of making last-minute cancellations less likely.

But the RMT has accused EMR of failing to deal with the problem adequately, by ‘sending trains into service which are likely to fail and need a full reset’.

The union is alleging that on-board safety systems are prone to failures, cutting communication links between drivers, despatchers and other control staff, and that three such failures were logged in the third week of July alone. Railnews understands that resetting safety systems on the 810s takes about 20 minutes, and during this time the systems involved are isolated.

RMT general secretary Eddie Dempsey said that RMT reps at EMR had been ‘extremely patient and tried to engage with management to no avail’.

He continued: ‘The company has even put out safety notices with no involvement, consultation or negotiation with our reps who represent those most at risk.

‘RMT is demanding that whilst these faults exist and until these trains are shown to be operating properly, they should be taken out of service.’

Most drivers tend to belong to ASLEF, which is not taking part in the strikes, but other train crew are often RMT members, along with staff at stations and control centres, and the strikes seem set to cause major disruption.

EMR said any suggestion that the Class 810 fleet did not meet the required safety standards was ‘incorrect’. It added that it was continuing ‘to engage in discussions with RMT regarding this dispute’.

EMR continued: ‘We recognise the Class 810 fleet has encountered performance and reliability issues in service and are working with the manufacturer, Hitachi Rail, to resolve these issues as quickly as possible.’

Hitachi said: ‘Hitachi Rail continues to work closely with all industry partners during the entry-into-service phase of the Class 810 fleet, implementing improvements and supporting the transition from the existing fleet to new Aurora trains.

‘We remain focused on delivering the remainder of the fleet and supporting East Midlands Railway as more new trains enter passenger service. As part of this commitment, we are investing in additional testing activity at Long Marston Rail Innovation Centre to improve fleet introduction and delivery of the remaining trains.’

What do you think? Click here to let us know.