GWR and train strikes

[FlyingFlamingo]

We have non refundable tickets booked on GWR leaving London for South Wales on 6th May. Aslef have announced more strikes today, and whilst GWR aren’t striking until the 8th there is an overtime ban from the 6th.

Does anyone have any experience with trying to travel from London on GWR on a non strike but overtime ban day please? If so how did it go? I can’t get a refund at the moment because the trains are currently still running, but I can get us all home on a bus for £50ish if I book it now. The danger is if the train is cancelled I guess the bus becomes more likely to sell out. We are staying in central London so driving isn’t really an option.

I swear I’m jinxed, we got stuck in Barcelona in January due to airport staff striking and this isn’t the first time recently we’ve booked trains and had them cancelled due to strikes, I think it’s the third and we hardly ever use the train. (I do support the strikers though)

I’m in the south west and it’s just really unpredictable. My gut feeling is that on busy / main lines there will be some trains running, so you will get there but not necessarily on the exact train you booked. So if reserved seats are absolutely essential to your travel then you could be in trouble.

Thanks…no whilst I would like a seat it’s not the end of the world as long as we can get home! Last Easter I was with dd trying to leave Paddington, our train was running on time but others had been cancelled and it was chaos, the platform announcements were delayed then all got called at once and everyone was trying to go in different directions, dd was crying and I would not like a repeat of that!