CP has cancelled 184 of the 1,090 trains that were planned to take place today between the hours of 00:00 and 19:00. The majority of these trains served metropolitan areas.
During this time period, CP – Comboios de Portugal reported that there were a total of 906 trains in circulation, with a suppression rate of 16.9%.
The metropolitan districts of Lisbon and Porto were the most negatively impacted by the strike, which resulted in the cancellation of 81 of the 520 planned events in Lisbon and 23 of the 271 scheduled events in Porto.
Regarding the urban ones in the city of Coimbra, only 24 of the 28 planned ones were carried out.
According to the statistics provided by CP, only 11 out of a total of 66 long-distance trains were actually operated as planned.
Concerning the regional service, 65 out of 259 were canceled, making it the service with the greatest cancellation rate (25.1%). This was the service that was cancelled the most often.
Following a number of days of strikes between the hours of 00:00 and 02:00, as well as an entire day’s worth of strikes on Thursday, the strike on IP and CP will begin at the eighth hour of service from now until April 30.
“at CP, workers whose normal work period covers more than three hours during the period between 00:00 and 05:00 will go on strike beginning with the seventh hour of service and continuing until the end of the month,” the union representative said.
At IP, “workers whose normal work period covers more than three hours during the period between 00:00 and 05:00, will go on strike from the seventh hour of service” until April 30. This strike will continue until the end of the month.
These strikes were declared by a platform of unions that included the following organizations: ASCEF – Associacao Sindical das Chefias Intermedias de Exploracao Ferroviária; SINFB – Sindicato Nacional dos Ferroviários Bracais e Afins; SINFA – Sindicato Independente dos Trabalhadores Ferroviários, das Infraestruturas e Afins; FENTECO
Because of the “disregardful attitude” that the corporation claims the train drivers have, the National Union of Portuguese Railroad Train Drivers (SMAQ) is also on strike during the full month of April.
“Effective wage increases,” “valorization of the traction career,” and improvements to working conditions in driver’s cabs and social facilities, as well as improvements to safety conditions on the lines and in engine rooms are among the requests made by the employees.
Also demanded is the “humanization of the work schedules, framed meal times, and a reduction in rest periods away from headquarters,” a “effective protocol for psychological support of drivers in the case of collisions with people on the track and accidents,” and the “recognition and valorization of the professional and training requirements of drivers within the new legislative framework.”