London commuters are bracing themselves for travel chaos following the announcement by tube workers of an all-out two-day strike which will bring virtually the whole tube network to a standstill. Members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union voted overwhelmingly for a 48-hour strike starting at 6.59 p.m. on Tuesday, June 9th and ending at 6.58 on Thursday, June 11th.  The walk-out has been called in protest over pay disputes, job losses and working conditions.The RMT union is accusing London Underground and Transport for London bosses of tearing up an agreement aimed at safeguarding jobs, as well as not addressing pay issues and refusing to rule out compulsory redundancies. On the pay dispute, a RMT statement said, “London Underground has refused to budge from an unacceptable five-year pay offer that gives no real-terms increase for four years, and which could even see pay cut.”
“London Underground has refused to budge from an unacceptable five-year pay offer that gives no real-terms increase for four years, and which could even see pay cut.”On its part, TfL accused the union of unrealistically calling for pay rises during a recession and for demanding guarantees for jobs that were no longer needed. TfL’s chief operating officer Howard Collins said, “the RMT leadership knows full well we are seeking to end the duplication of back office jobs and that no front line staff will be affected. No responsible union should be asking hard-pressed farepayers and taxpayers to fund jobs that are no longer needed and vastly inflated pay demands.” RMT general secretary Bob Crow said that the ballot in favour of strike action reflects the anger of tube workers, and that it was up to LU and TfL management to resolve the confrontation by withdrawing their plans to cut jobs and addressing the pay issues.With both sides firmly entrenched in their respective positions, the only thing that looks certain is that London commuters will bear the brunt of the network shut-down and will have to find alternative transport for getting to work. And many will no doubt be worrying if further stoppages lie ahead this summer, if the union and tube bosses fail to reach an early resolution to the dispute.

Commuters faced with travelling by car during the tube strike will encounter what is certain to be a parking nightmare in the city. With the prospect of further strikes throughout the summer, many may choose to avoid these transport and parking problems by obtaining a long term parking space from parking companies such as 24 7 Parking.

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