Rail Strikes Cost UK Hospitality Sector £4bn in Lost Sales

The UK hospitality sector has lost billions of pounds worth of sales since 2022 due to rail and Tube strikes, with next week's planned industrial action set to hit operators again.

In the last three years the walkouts have cost the industry an estimated £4bn in sales losses, according to data from trade association UKHospitality (UKH), as reported by The Morning Advertiser (The MA).

Industry leaders have stressed that transport reliability is essential for hospitality and nighttime industries since strikes – combined with new cost pressures – threaten sector recovery, weaken consumer confidence, and risk stifling growth.

UKH chair Kate Nicholls described the rail strike impact to hospitality businesses as “significant”, warning that footfall and sales, especially in London, would be affected again by fresh strikes.

Nicholls told The Morning Advertiser (The MA) that the level of impact comes at a time when businesses are already under pressure as they face £3.4bn in new costs each year.

“It’s crucial all parties involved get round the table to negotiate a solution that can avoid these damaging strikes, and that the Government acts on our calls to lower business rates, fix NICs and cut VAT at the Budget this autumn,” Nicolls added. 

The strikes over pay disputes and working conditions since June 2022 “severely undermine” the UK night time economy’s recovery efforts, according to Michael Kill, CEO of Night-Time Industries Association (NTIA).

“When people cannot rely on transport, they stay closer to home or don’t go don’t go out at all. In the UK, that has meant cancelled cultural moments such as the recently rescheduled Coldplay shows, and the severe knock-on effects across pubs, clubs, restaurants, hotels, and theatres,” Kill told The MA.

“At a time when rising costs already squeeze operators, transport disruption has compounded the pressure. Without reliable services, we risk stifling growth, losing audiences, and undermining the vibrancy of our nightlife,” added Kill.

Further Strikes Planned Into Next Week

Fresh industrial action is planned by members of the Rail, Maritime And Transport union (RMT) for five days from midnight on Sunday 7 September to 11.59pm on Thursday 11 September. 

The night-time economy and central London businesses are expected to bear the brunt of the financial impact.

The walkouts are anticipated to leave little or no service across all of the London Underground, while a separate dispute will mean no service on the Docklands Light Railway (DLR) on Tuesday and Thursday next week.

The Centre for Economics and Business Research told the Evening Standard that the Tube and DLR strikes could result in a direct economic hit of roughly £230m. This takes into account the loss of approximately 700,000 working days across both TfL staff and the wider commuter base, with indirect effects likely to drive up the cost impact further still.