Tube strike to cause travel chaos
- 00:01:48
- ITN
Tube strike to cause travel chaos
Tube workers are poised to bring the capital to a standstill if talks aimed at averting a 48-hour strike fail. Thousands of members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union will walk out from 7pm until 7pm on Thursday. But if the strike goes ahead, England football fans will be shut out of Wembley and the World Cup qualifier against Andorra will be played behind closed doors. London's mayor Boris Johnson said the strike was a "ludicrous and unnecessary disruption" to the capital and criticised union leaders. Mr Johnson and Transport for London (TfL) have put in place a series of contingency plans aimed at helping commuters get to work, including extra buses, taxi-sharing and schemes to lead cyclists across the capital. The mayor said a "myriad of organisations and individuals" had agreed to lay on free services, lead cycle rides, drive extra services and marshal shared taxi ranks. He added: "Londoners and commuters trying to do their level best to cope with the most challenging economic climate for a long time will be furious at this decision. "It is quite simply outrageous for the leadership of the RMT to ask their members, the majority of whom did not vote for this strike, to take part in this ludicrous and unnecessary disruption to our city. "I and TfL are determined to do as much as is humanly possible to ease the journeys of the millions of Londoners whose lives will be disrupted by this strike action. "Our plans call for a team effort over the next few days by everyone in this great city to ensure we keep the capital running." RMT general secretary Bob Crow said the union had made every effort during the talks to reach agreement with London Underground over job losses and a pay deal.
ITN | June 9, 2009
