Fans face travel chaos with rail strikes to hit marquee Lord's Test

Three days of rail strikes next week, including a 24-hour walkout on the London Underground, threaten to cause chaos for the marquee Test of the summer at Lord’s between England and South Africa.

MCC has written to its members and ticket-buyers urging them to make alternative plans for getting to and from Lord’s on days two, three and four next week.

A national rail strike is planned for Thursday and Saturday, but the most difficult day for supporters is likely to be Friday, day three of the match, when a Tube strike will cripple London transport.

The club has negotiated extra street parking with Westminster City Council, which has agreed to relax its four-hour limit, allowing spectators to park and go to the game, but it will clearly not be enough to cope with a crowd of close to 28,000, with only a handful of seats unsold for that day.

Supporters have been sent details of bus and coach companies that run services to London and NCP car parks at Underground stations where they can leave their cars during the strikes.

MCC will not be offering ticket refunds to supporters who cannot get to the ground due to the industrial action. The refund policy at Lord’s covers weather interruptions or Covid protocols. There is a danger of vast swathes of empty seats at the start of play at 11am as fans struggle to get to the Home of Cricket.

Around 2,500 tickets unsold for first four days

“We are monitoring RMT developments closely and have worked through options to alleviate the impact the strikes may have on members, general ticket holders and staff,” said an MCC statement.

“These include arrangements with Westminster Council to adjust parking restrictions in the local borough, and the securing of additional parking space with local organisations to ensure staff can reach the ground to safely deliver each matchday.

“Beyond the additional measures arranged by the club, there are several coach companies that run services to and from London, and NCP car parks at 75 TfL stations across the city.

“These details have been communicated directly to ticket holders and further information can be found on lords.org. We encourage all attendees to review their own travel arrangements and plan accordingly.”

There are around 2,500 unsold tickets for the first four days of the Test, most in the top tier of prices up to £160.

MCC faced criticism during the New Zealand Test earlier this summer for their high prices during a cost of living crisis when around 16,000 tickets were unsold just days before the match was due to start. The majority of tickets are priced at more than £100 including for juniors.

MCC announced in June a review of ticket prices for the 2023 Ashes Test and released a further 2,000 tickets for juniors at £20 following the backlash.

Tickets have sold much better for the South Africa Test but those available are in the higher price bracket and add up to around £300,000 in value. Most of the tickets are either returns or tickets released after sightscreen positioning but the added travel chaos could put off potential buyers snapping up late tickets.