More misery for London commuters with tube staff planning walk-out

Thousands of British commuters will face more misery as a 24-hour strike is planned on two busy London underground lines from late Wednesday.

Transport for London (TfL) told passengers Tuesday night the strike is planned to start on the Central Line and the Waterloo & City Line from Wednesday evening and will continue on Thursday.

The transport union RMT, representing Tube drivers, said the strike is planned due to forced displacement of staff.

The union said a ballot of its members showed strong support for industrial action.

Mick Cash, the RMT general secretary, said that "RMT negotiators have made strenuous efforts to resolve this dispute but the door has been slammed in our faces."

"We have made all reasonable efforts to resolve this dispute," said Peter McNaught, operations director for London Underground's Central line.

According to the TfL, last trains on the Central and Waterloo & City lines will finish an hour earlier than usual on Wednesday night. On Thursday, there is likely to be no trains running on the Waterloo & City line and services on the Central line will be less frequent.

The Waterloo & City line is used by thousands of workers arriving at Waterloo station from southwest London, Hampshire and Surrey, with many heading for jobs in the City of London.

Other tube lines are expected to be busier as passengers seek alternative ways of making their journeys.

Last week, a major stoppage across the underground system affected millions of commuters. Endi