It would normally be busy with the morning commuters.
But this was York Station around 7am today – almost deserted, as the rail strike took hold.
By that time on a normal Tuesday, three trains would have been despatched to London Kings Cross and the platforms would be bustling with passengers and staff.
But the information boards were showing just five departures, to London, Leeds, Manchester and Edinburgh.
Food kiosks were shuttered, but WHSmith and Sainsbury’s were operating as normal.
It was the first day of three days of strike action this week by the RMT union.
That has seen Selby and Scarborough stations, among others, completely shut.
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The strikes are expected to cause the cancellation of about 80% of train services across Britain today.
RMT general secretary Mick Lynch said Network Rail had offered a 2% pay rise with the possibility of a further 1% later dependent on efficiency savings.
He told BBC’s Newsnight that Network Rail had “escalated” the dispute during Monday’s talks, saying: “They have issued me a letter saying that there are going to be redundancies starting from July 1.
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“So rather than trying to come to an agreement in this dispute, they’ve escalated it by giving us formal notice of redundancy amongst our Network Rail members.”
He warned the dispute could continue for months.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson is expected to say ahead of a Cabinet meeting on Tuesday that unions are “harming the very people they claim to be helping”.
He is set to accuse unions of “driving away commuters who ultimately support the jobs of rail workers”, while also hitting businesses across the country.
