Santa has his sleigh but we mortals have to rely on other means of transport (Picture: Getty)
‘Twas the day before Christmas and all through the towns, are buses and trains still making the usual rounds?
Whether it’s heading out to the pubs to meet your pals before Santa visits or you’ve left your shopping until the very last minute, not everybody can stay put at home watching Christmas films.
So, can you get your usual buses on Christmas Eve?
And what about the ongoing strikes – are there planned strikes today?
Do trains run on Christmas Eve?
As Christmas Eve is not a Bank Holiday, public transport usually runs fairly regularly.
They might not, however, run a full schedule – choosing to finish earlier or run less frequently after a certain time.
However, this year, there will be strike action to factor in.
As strikes continue, members from the rail unions will begin walking out from 6pm on December 24 until 7am on December 27.
The advice from Trainline this year is to only travel if absolutely necessary on Christmas Eve.
A note on their website reads: ‘We recommend you travel before midday on Saturday 24th December. Trains will stop running and the network will shut down much earlier than usual.’
‘Tickets for 24th December can instead be used on either the 21st, 22nd, 23rd December or up to and including Thursday 29th December 2022.’
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Trains do not run on Christmas Day or Boxing Day, however, there will be some coaches running.
Do buses run on Christmas Eve?
Like trains, buses will run but could operate on a reduced service.
While bus companies outside of London will run as normal but could start to wind down earlier, London buses will be on strike on Christmas Eve.
The Abellio London bus strike action in December will take place on December 24, 27 and 31 and will primarily affect buses in south and west London. Striking workers will be from depots in Battersea, Beddington, Hayes, Southall, Twickenham and Walworth.
More strikes could put your Christmas eve plans on ice (Picture: Bloomberg via Getty Images)
These are the 59 affected routes:
3, 24, 27, 45, 63, 68, 109, 111, 130, 156, 159, 195, 196, 201, 207, 267, 270, 278, 285, 315, 322, 344, 345, 350, 367, 381, 407, 415, 427, 433, 464, 482, 490, 671, 969, C10, E5, E7, E10, E11, H20, H25, H26, H28, P5, P13, R68, R70, S4, U5, U7, U9, N3, N27, N63, N68, N109, N207 and N381.
TFL’s website confirms that other London bus routes will be running a Sunday service all day and there will be no night buses.
There are no TFL or Aviva buses on Christmas Day, with many services returning for a reduced service from Boxing Day.
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Don’t get stranded this Christmas.
