A London Underground tube train. Photo credit: Coolinsights
Londoners are bracing for a 72-hour Tube strike after talks between London Underground and trade union RMT collapsed. Around 1,000 maintenance workers on the Jubilee, Northern and Piccadilly lines are expected to walk out on 4pm on Tuesday 24 April in a dispute over pensions and benefits.
The news comes at a time when the capital’s transport network is under scrutiny ahead of the London 2012 Olympics. According to The Daily Mail, London Underground drivers could be in line for bonuses of up to £6,000 for working during the Games, while bus drivers have threatened strike action unless they receive extra pay during the busy period.
Transport for London (TfL) has published a Olympics travel “hot spot” map, warning commuters which lines and stations are likely to experience congestion during the Games.
Stop the strike. The Tube strike “threatens to cause disruption out of proportion to the relatively small size of the workforce involved” said The Evening Standard, calling for both sides to resume negotiations. “It serves no one’s interests for it to disrupt the travel of up to two million people… London will be the victim of posturing.”
Check out the famous London Underground song (NSFW) below.
The blame game. London Mayoral candidates Boris Johnson and Ken Livingstone were quick to blame each other for the strike, reported The Independent. “Londoners are under no illusion that these needless strikes have been called by Ken Livingstone’s union boss supporters as part of his strategy to be re-elected,” thundered incumbent Johnson. Livingstone blamed Johnson for failing to talk to unions: “Under the Tory Mayor there have been more strikes in four years than the previous eight.”
Check out Transport for London’s Olympics travel guide to see how your journey may be affected during the Games.
Olympic travel chaos? The Telegraph argued that TfL’s Olympic travel map points to trouble ahead on London transport during the Games: “Despite investing £6.5 billion to upgrade and extend transport links in order to increase capacity and improve services across London and the rest of the country the graphic shows the alarming level of strain the capital’s transport system will face during the Olympics.”
Londoners, how do you plan to deal with the London 2012 Olympics travel disruption? Let us know below.
Testing times. Travel disruption will start before the Games do, according to Metro, as Olympics travel timetables are put to the test: “Further delays and cancellations are likely on London Underground and Overground lines in the weeks ahead.”
