Union warns of more Tube strikes

Services have slowly returned to normal

Union officials have said they have not ruled out further walkouts after services on London Underground (LU) returned to normal after a strike.

The 48-hour stoppage, called by the Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union, ended at 1900 BST on Thursday.

The union said it was willing to talk to Tube bosses but said it had a mandate for further industrial action.

More talks between the RMT - which has called for a pay rise - and LU are to take place next week.

Despite both sides saying they were willing to resume talks, none were held on Thursday.

Gridlocked roads

RMT leader Bob Crow said: "We are still pushing for the direct, top-level talks that are needed to end this dispute."

On Thursday, a Transport for London (TfL) spokesman said: "There has been an exchange of letters between LU and the RMT leadership via [the conciliation service] Acas to set out the basis for further discussions at Acas on the remaining issues in dispute, notably redundancy arrangements."

London Mayor Boris Johnson said: "I think there's a very good deal to be done and I very much hope the RMT leadership will take it."

Nine Tube lines were affected by the industrial action as commuters struggled to get in to work on overcrowded buses and gridlocked roads.

TfL said 160 Tube trains operated on Thursday, more than a third of the usual service.

It added that over the two days of the strike, bicycle use trebled to 1.5m journeys, 10,000 people used a free shuttle boat service, 100 extra buses were laid on and a million people used the TfL website for travel information.

The London Chamber of Commerce has estimated the capital's economy will lose more than £100m as a result of the strike.

E-mail this to a friend

Printable version