Commuters faced “chaos” on Monday morning as a London Underground strike caused major disruption.
There was severe disruption across the network on the first working day after the Platinum Jubilee bank holiday period as 4,000 members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union who work at Tube stations conducted a 24-hour walkout.
The strike is part of a dispute over jobs and pensions.
- READ MORE: Commuter chaos as rail strikes go ahead
A reduced timetable was operating on some London Underground sections, with services suspended elsewhere.
Many stations, especially those in central and south London, were closed, causing long queues for buses.
London Underground advised people not to travel.
Commuters at Waterloo Station have been left confused by advice on the Transport for London website about today’s Tube strike.
The TfL website advises travellers to travel between 8am and 6pm on Monday. However, it also warns that many stations will be closed throughout the day.
The entrance to Waterloo underground station remained closed as of 8.10am.
William, a commuter from south-west London, said that while he did not agree with the strike, the information given out could have been more accurate.
He believed that he would be able to travel from 8am.
“I just wish they had put the correct information up”, he said.
“Personally, I don’t agree with the strikes as they stand anyway.
"However, if they are striking and they’ve gone through the correct process to do it, it’s out of my control.
"Then the information online should be the correct information that allows people to plan their journey.”
One commuter, Charlotte from Surbiton, said she was unsure if she would be able to complete her journey to Canary Wharf.
“We’ll see if anything opens up, and I’ll go home if it doesn’t”, she said.
“I’m pretty sure everyone will be delayed coming in today.”
She said she had been traveling for almost an hour already, adding that she didn’t feel like the strike was justified.
“I don’t necessarily see the reason for the strike”, she said.
“It doesn’t necessarily feel like it’s justified to cause this much disruption, especially when London is getting up and running again.
"It seems like a big setback for the city.”
Construction worker Miguel Basantes was stranded at Paddington station as he tried to get to work in Hampstead.
The 54-year-old described the situation as “chaos”.
He went on: “In Liverpool Street there were crowds of people and I was waiting for 20 or 30 minutes.
“I don’t know how to get to work.”
Indian restaurant worker Kundan Darla, 25, said: “I think it is bad, I am too late for work.”
Frustrated passengers gathered around the entrance to Waterloo station.
Tracy Brown, 45, a mother-of-three from Acton, told the PA news agency: “Getting three children ready in the mornings for school is hard enough without a Tube strike making things harder.
“I am fed up of running around to get my children to school on time because some people are so greedy.”
Paul Glennon, 52, a construction worker in central London, said: “It is back to reality for all of us. No more parties and parades.
“I have spent my whole morning getting on and waiting for packed buses in the rain.”
Transport for London (TfL) said no plans have been tabled on pensions or terms and conditions, and nobody will lose their jobs because of the proposals it has set out.
As part of previous funding agreements, the Government has required TfL to work towards achieving financial sustainability on its operations by April 2023.
TfL has proposed not recruiting into around 500 to 600 posts as they become vacant.
The RMT said that, under current proposals, working agreements will be torn up and the looming threat to pensions remains in place.
General secretary Mick Lynch said: “We are demanding a direct face-to-face meeting with mayor Sadiq Khan to sort this mess out.
“There’s no point in our union continuing to sit opposite management representatives who have neither the inclination nor the authority to negotiate a settlement, when the power lies with the mayor.”
RMT members on the Tube are also taking action short of a strike, meaning station staff might not work overtime, until Sunday July 10, which may result in short notice station closures.
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