Rail workers strike continues for London-bound commuters in southern England

Inconvenience continued Friday for tens of thousands of commuters working in London when the second strike in a week by rail workers brought one of the country's busiest lines to a standstill.

A 24-hour stoppage by train drivers on Southern Railway started at midnight, following a crippling 48-hour strike earlier this week.

The rail operator said it had cancelled more than 2,200 train journeys Friday on routes, affecting around 300,000 passengers. On its website, the company advised passengers not to travel, with disruption to services likely to continue into Saturday.

With more strikes planned for next week by train conductors on Southern trains, pre-Christmas travel obstructions are likely to continue.

Passengers have staged a protest at London's busy Victoria station and the Association of British Commuters handed a letter to the Department for Transport (DfT) demanding government action.

Angry commuters also took to social media Friday to vent their frustration at the mayhem caused by the stoppage.

The London Standard reported that one commuter said on social media he would need a magic carpet to get to work. Another called for driverless trains after being stuck in traffic since the very early morning en route to the airport.

Talks between trade union leaders and the rail company through the government's official conciliation and arbitration service ACAS, has so far failed to make a breakthrough in what has become a bitter dispute.

At the heart of the dispute is a plan by Southern to introduce trains on the network which will have doors controlled by train drivers rather than conductors, better known as train guards.

The two main unions representing rail workers, Aslef and RMT, are in dispute with the rail operator over changes to guards' roles on driver-only operated trains. Under the changes, Southern want train drivers to take responsibility for opening and closing the doors, with train guards becoming on-board supervisors. They claim driver-operated doors will pose a safety problem.

A spokesman for the Association of British Commuters told media in London: "We have suffered a year-long nightmare because of the collapse of Southern rail. We have desperately called for government action and have been repeatedly ignored, even while many of us have lost our jobs, or had to move house."

Nick Brown, chief operating officer of Southern's parent company Govia Thameslink Railway, said: "The unions must stop the pain and suffering blighting passengers and commerce. The public will be simply perplexed that the union is maintaining such an entrenched position, given drivers being fully in charge of the train is so commonplace today."

Southern Railway operates trains around London, particularly the south coast towns such as Brighton, home to thousands of commuters who travel daily to Britain's capital. Endit