By Delphine Queen, Nurul Islam and Ako Zadda
Businesses on Holloway Road say the they have been affected by the ongoing train and tube strikes
and are preparing for more disruption as additional shutdowns are planned for July.
Ram Lal, a shopkeeper in Smart Shop next to Holloway Road Station, has noticed an increase in the
number of people waiting outside Holloway Road station. “It’s a lot busier than it was in
2019,” he said.
He added that even though it has been busier because of the train strikes and delays,
customers don’t have time to wait to be served at his shop. “If I have one customer here and
someone else comes, they leave because they don’t want to wait,” he said.
Yousef, who works at Chip Inn Fish Bar and didn’t want to give his surname, explained that his business has also been negatively affected. “Because of underground strikes business has been very quiet.”
The Guardian has reported that London was affected by rising traffic during the strikes, with
congestion levels going from 77% on the week of 13th June to 98% on the week of 20th June, when
the strikes took place.
This was backed up by a local taxi firm. Khan, who works for Islington Cars, said: “We have regular
customers, but we are definitely getting more customers because of the tube strikes.”
Not everyone is turning to four wheels to beat the strikes. Research from Bloomberg News shows the
increase of bike usage, with some taking to their bikes instead of public transport in a bid to keep
moving around the capital.
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