London Underground drivers have launched a second 24-hour strike, causing severe disruption for millions of commuters. The walkout, by members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT), began at midnight and follows a similar strike on Tuesday.
As many as six Tube lines have been fully or partly suspended, with ten lines affected at the start of the evening rush hour. Transport for London (TfL) has warned of no service on the Circle, Piccadilly, and Metropolitan lines (between Baker Street and Aldgate), and the Central line (between White City and Liverpool Street). Severe delays have been reported on several other lines throughout the day.
Passengers travelling to and from Heathrow Airport have faced additional problems due to a points failure, which led to the suspension of the Elizabeth line to the airport and severe delays on the Heathrow Express, compounding the suspension of the Piccadilly line.
The strikes come after last-ditch talks failed to resolve a dispute over a voluntary, compressed four-day week. The RMT says more talks are expected next week. Tuesday’s walkout caused a 41% drop in Tube journeys, while the Elizabeth line saw a 19% rise in usage.
TfL has advised passengers not to attempt to travel on the Tube after 9pm, as services will not run to normal times due to the shortage of drivers. Services are expected to return to normal on Friday morning.
RMT London lead Jared Wood warned that further strikes could occur if negotiations remain at an impasse. Speaking to the Metro, he said: “We will get everyone together and we’ll have a discussion about what the next steps are. In the meantime, we would hope to have met the company again to see if there’s any shift in their position.” He added that further action would be “under immediate consideration” if the terms of the proposal are not renegotiated.
