London reduced to chaos as Tube strike takes hold

London: Commuters suffered rush-hour chaos as the Tube was hit by official strike action and a wildcat walkout.

Dozens of stations, including Euston, Westminster, Paddington, Bank and Monument, were closed for all or part of the peak period as station staff staged a 24-hour stoppage.

The closures were the result of action by the RMT union, which says new rotas being brought in by London Underground (LU) breach safety rules, a claim dismissed by LU.

There was further huge disruption on the Northern line caused by train drivers taking wildcat strike action in support of a sacked colleague.

The Waterloo & City line between Waterloo mainline station and Bank was shut and the Central line was suspended between Woodford and Hainault because night engineering work failed to finish on time. Both later reopened.

'Little impact'

LU maintained that the majority of services were running and that they believed the strike was having "little impact".

But commuters reported their journeys were being badly disrupted. No extra buses were provided. Station staff staged picket lines throughout the capital but many defied the union strike call and turned up for work. At the height of the morning peak period, about 40 stations out of 275 were closed.

The situation was constantly changing. Some stations later reopened as staff became available when others shut. During the first strike, on New Year's Eve, 37 stations were closed.

Tim O'Toole, LU managing director, launched a bitter attack on the union. Writing in the Evening Standard yesterday he said: "In order to justify this strike, the RMT have made several false claims. They say London Underground was threatening up to 800 job losses. Invoking the terrible events of 7 July, they claimed that central London Tube stations would be left with "dangerously" unsafe staffing levels.

"Let me set the record straight. I will never permit unsafe staff levels and not one member of Tube staff will lose their job. In fact, Londoners will feel reassured as they see more staff out on stations and platforms."

'Frustrating'

He added: "It is hugely frustrating to see the RMT deliberately mislead the public, and indeed their own members, with these false claims. It is particularly distressing to hear the events of 7 July invoked, when one of the beacons to shine through those dark days was the sheer professionalism, bravery and dedication of Tube staff."

In turn RMT leader Bob Crow condemned LU, saying passenger safety was being put at risk and that stations were only being kept open by "untrained staff and managers who are working shifts of up to 20 hours".

Union leaders plan to escalate the dispute and ballot the entire Tube membership for action short of a strike a work to rule in protest over the alleged safety breaches. A further 24-hour strike is planned on 5 February by station staff.

Action could cost up to £50m

London's business leaders say the strike could cost London's economy up to £50 million (Dh324 million) because of staff arriving late or not turning up at all.

The dispute centres on a deal last year when the union won a 35-hour week for station staff. But one of the conditions was that some redeployment, not job cuts, would have to be made. This was agreed.

Union leaders now say that the large number of changes to station staff rostering was not agreed, and that some stations will be left "dangerously understaffed". They want the introduction of the new rosters suspended while further talks take place.

Station staff are divided into 44 groups for operational reasons, LU says 40 groups have agreed to the changes, but it must be unanimous for the new system to work. The four groups which have not agreed, Acton Town, Arnos Grove, Green Park and Leicester Square, all serve the Piccadilly line, recognised as an RMT stronghold.