London Tube strike scheduled for Apr 28 (2 days) and May 5 (3 days). Help!
 

Perfect timing for our trip! We leave on Tuesday for London.

We were planning on buying 1week paper travel cards from the train station. Are those good on the buses, too?

Nevermind.

Yes.

I'm not at home to check, but found a way to chck.

Yes and buses IME are more enjoyable than a sunken potentially mobbed underground Tube ride - sit on the upper bus deck right up front over the driver and you get an awesome view of London as you roll along - plus buses do not require interminable flights of stairs and long dank maze-like corridors to navigate - buses thus can be quicker for short rides especially since they will drop you very close to your actual destination.

there have recently been Tube strikes and expect more with the recalcitrant Tory government trying to smash unions.

If there is a Tube strike, the buses won't be quite so enjoyable as they will be packed. Get a good map of London, a comfortable pair of walking shoes and plan your itinerary accordingly. An excellent site for such a purpose is www.walkit.com. Often these strikes don't amount to much just be prepared.

And you always have London's burgeoning pedicab fleet to take!

https://www.google.com/search?q=lond...=1600&bih=1075

Historytraveler, I agree that walkit.com is an excellent site for gauging any distances in London, point to point.

Or get a smart phone with GPS on it!

It’s only a couple of days, but starts the night of our going to the Globe. Shakespeare at the Globe! My old English prof said she was jealous.

Anyway, I looked up the bus line back to the hotel. It’s direct and lets off right by the hotel, so no troubles there. As for anything else, we’re playing a lot by ear. Husband says he might not mind just taking a bus ride, just to see things! Good. I was hoping he’d think of that one “all on his own,” conveniently forgetting I mentioned it a few times over the past few months. Just a few. Let it percolate in and marinate for a while.

We know places we want to go, and where they are in relation to each other. My notes are good and my map-guide is littered with little post-it flags.

I can’t believe we’re flying away this coming Tuesday!!!

Propita, re The Globe theatre. Do spend the extra pound or whatever the charge is now for a cushion! Its a great experience but the seating is punishing. I hope you enjoy it as much as we did.

Oh, thank you!

I've explained to Husband that all my research--and I can't count the hours--is usually little bits and pieces...like this! I'm not going to read that on the Globe's website.

>>I'm not going to read that on the Globe's website.<<

There is info about cushions on the website . . ..

From the FAQs >>Do you have cushions or seat backs available for hire?

Cushions are available to hire online when you book your tickets.

Please note cushions must be ordered at the same time as your tickets online, they cannot be booked separately. Otherwise you can hire cushions and seat backs from the Piazza up to one hour before the performance begins. Please note that these are not permitted in the yard of the Globe Theatre.<<

I'm so glad you posted about the tube strike. I'm taking three friends to England and we arrive on the 5th (first day of the tube strike). Hopefully it will be canceled/re-scheduled before we arrive but if not, I'll be prepared.

As someone who works as an international flight attendant and flies London a lot, I must warn you that when the tube goes on strike it is a mess! There are massive lines for the buses and long waits in traffic so be sure and bring a really good pair of walking shoes and have a Plan B where you are going each day!

Hi Janisj, things must have changed since we went to the Globe, admittedly about 6 years ago. We ere able to hire cushions at intermission.

Oh - I know that for sure . . . and it wouldn't phase me (especially since it is only for 3 days) . . . but the women I'm traveling w/ expect me to 'fix' things ;)

I'm mostly worried about the 7th - we can get around on foot and by bus or boat, but getting home from the theatre will be a mess!

oops - my post was in response to dutyfree's :)

"I must warn you that when the tube goes on strike it is a mess!"

...absolutely isn't the experience of most Londoners any more - though it's an accurate description of tube strikes 20 years ago.

First, there's no such thing as "a tube strike" any more. London's tube has lots of different unions - and, for historical reasons, some bits of the system have different unions from others. This announcement is by one - endlessly militant - union: most other unions oppose it. Even while the strike goes on, some kind of tube service usually operates.

Second, I can't remember a strike affecting London's trains, tubes and buses since the 1980s. Most London public transport is completely unaffected

Third, the overwhelming majority of strikes announced get called off several days before they were due - or between the two pre-threatened bits. Even the most militant strikers (and their families) are subject to the hostility of their neighbours, who - whatever Marxist delusions PalQ still nurtures - are virulently hostile to the behaviour of transport unions.

Fourth: this is the 21st century. A huge proportion of commuters, for a day or two, can (and do) work just as productively at home. That doesn't help elderly people needing to get to hospital appointments, or people in the suburbs doing jobs that can't be telecommuted (which is why the Tory administration's fight against the unions is so popular): but it means the armies of commuters who used to walk 5 miles each way 30 years ago are mostly now at their home desks.

Strikes are still a nuisance. But there's no need for hysteria over them - even if (as they usually don't) they actually happen.

>>but the women I'm traveling w/ expect me to 'fix' things<<

Good luck with taking on the RMT.....

:)

If the strike goes forward - will it affect all the lines?

(Why does Boris want to close the ticket offices anyway - doesn't he know American tourists are intimidated by the ticket machines >) )

I'm backing up PalonQ's suggest, it's the best option but that's only if you don't mind walking :)

>>(Why does Boris want to close the ticket offices anyway - doesn't he know American tourists are intimidated by the ticket machines >) )<<

We are told people will be redeployed in and around to help the bewildered, rather than sitting in ticket offices (especially now that TfL doesn't need people to handle cash). In the barrage of argument about the process, it's not at all clear how that will work in terms of visible people available when and where they're needed, nor therefore in terms of jobs and pay for the people affected. And therein lies the trouble.