London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Saturday, Aug 23, 2025

London tube strike: major disruption as 24-hour walkout hits travel

London tube strike: major disruption as 24-hour walkout hits travel

Entire underground suspended during Tuesday morning rush hour with picket lines outside stations
Commuters have been facing chaos after thousands of tube workers went on strike over Transport for London spending cuts.

TfL encouraged people to work from home on Tuesday and Thursday as a result of the Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union’s strike. The union said members were “solidly supporting” industrial action with picket lines outside tube stations.

Another 24-hour walkout is planned for Thursday, with knock-on effects on services on Wednesday and Friday. The union fears spending cuts will lead to hundreds of job losses and reductions in pensions and working conditions.

The entire underground was suspended during the Tuesday morning rush hour, although limited services returned later on a few lines. People tried to get to work on buses or in taxis but huge queues formed, forcing many to give up and go home, the Press Association reported.

Angry commuters were left unable to get to work. Sean Reynolds told the Evening Standard: “This is unacceptable. I have only just started going back to the office full time. Fares are going up and now this, it’s just not on.”

Meanwhile, Damian Callaghan said: “This is terrible for the economy. The tube workers should be ashamed.”

Transport for London (TfL) has said no jobs would be lost and it had not proposed any changes to pensions or terms and conditions.

TfL’s chief operating officer, Andy Lord, said: “We haven’t proposed any changes to pensions or terms and conditions, and nobody has or will lose their jobs because of the proposals we have set out, so this action is completely unnecessary.”

He encouraged people to work from home on Tuesday and Thursday. Asked about what provisions had been made for key workers who were not able to work from home, Lord said: “We’ve laid on extra buses and we also have all our other TfL services which are operating normally. I hope that they will be able to get to work without too much of an inconvenience.”

The RMT general secretary, Mick Lynch, said: “Sadiq Khan should be standing up to Tory ministers who want to needlessly attack jobs, pensions and conditions of key transport workers.

“It is this political failure that has left tube workers with no choice but to strike this week. Our members have been left paying the price for a turf war between City Hall and the government and they are not having it, as can be seen right across London today.”

Train passengers in the south of England were also hit by disruption unrelated to the tube strike. Network Rail said a suspected power supply failure had led to a “complete loss of signalling” in Ashtead, Surrey.

A spokesperson for Khan, the mayor of London, said the strikes would cause disruption to Londoners and businesses trying to recover from two devastating years.

“It will also damage TfL’s revenues at a time when TfL is already under huge financial strain due to the pandemic,” they said. “TfL are working to mitigate the impact of the strikes but disruption is inevitable.

“Sadiq doesn’t want to see strike action and is imploring the unions to come to the table and work with City Hall and TfL.”

The action came on the day rail fares were increased by an average of 4.8%, causing more misery for passengers.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Bunkers, Billions and Apocalypse: The Secret Compounds of Zuckerberg and the Tech Giants
Ukraine Declares De Facto War on Hungary and Slovakia with Terror Drone Strikes on Their Gas Lifeline
Animated K-pop Musical ‘KPop Demon Hunters’ Becomes Netflix’s Most-Watched Original Animated Film
New York Appeals Court Voids Nearly $500 Million Civil Fraud Penalty Against Trump While Upholding Fraud Liability
Elon Musk tweeted, “Europe is dying”
Far-Right Activist Convicted of Incitement Changes Gender and Demands: "Send Me to a Women’s Prison" | The Storm in Germany
Hungary Criticizes Ukraine: "Violating Our Sovereignty"
Will this be the first country to return to negative interest rates?
Child-free hotels spark controversy
North Korea is where this 95-year-old wants to die. South Korea won’t let him go. Is this our ally or a human rights enemy?
Hong Kong Launches Regulatory Regime and Trials for HKD-Backed Stablecoins
China rehearses September 3 Victory Day parade as imagery points to ‘loyal wingman’ FH-97 family presence
Trump Called Viktor Orbán: "Why Are You Using the Veto"
Horror in the Skies: Plane Engine Exploded, Passengers Sent Farewell Messages
MSNBC Rebrands as MS NOW Amid Comcast’s Cable Spin-Off
AI in Policing: Draft One Helps Speed Up Reports but Raises Legal and Ethical Concerns
Shame in Norway: Crown Princess’s Son Accused of Four Rapes
Apple Begins Simultaneous iPhone 17 Production in India and China
A Robot to Give Birth: The Chinese Announcement That Shakes the World
Finnish MP Dies by Suicide in Parliament Building
Outrage in the Tennis World After Jannik Sinner’s Withdrawal Storm
William and Kate Are Moving House – and the New Neighbors Were Evicted
Class Action Lawsuit Against Volkswagen: Steering Wheel Switches Cause Accidents
Taylor Swift on the Way to the Super Bowl? All the Clues Stirring Up Fans
Dogfights in the Skies: Airbus on Track to Overtake Boeing and Claim Aviation Supremacy
Tim Cook Promises an AI Revolution at Apple: "One of the Most Significant Technologies of Our Generation"
Apple Expands Social Media Presence in China With RedNote Account Ahead of iPhone 17 Launch
Are AI Data Centres the Infrastructure of the Future or the Next Crisis?
Cambridge Dictionary Adds 'Skibidi,' 'Delulu,' and 'Tradwife' Amid Surge of Online Slang
Bill Barr Testifies No Evidence Implicated Trump in Epstein Case; DOJ Set to Release Records
Zelenskyy Returns to White House Flanked by European Allies as Trump Pressures Land-Swap Deal with Putin
The CEO Who Replaced 80% of Employees for the AI Revolution: "I Would Do It Again"
Emails Worth Billions: How Airlines Generate Huge Profits
Character.ai Bets on Future of AI Companionship
China Ramps Up Tax Crackdown on Overseas Investments
Japanese Office Furniture Maker Expands into Bomb Shelter Market
Intel Shares Surge on Possible U.S. Government Investment
Hurricane Erin Threatens U.S. East Coast with Dangerous Surf
EU Blocks Trade Statement Over Digital Rule Dispute
EU Sends Record Aid as Spain Battles Wildfires
JPMorgan Plans New Canary Wharf Tower
Zelenskyy and his allies say they will press Trump on security guarantees
Beijing is moving into gold and other assets, diversifying away from the dollar
Escalating Clashes in Serbia as Anti-Government Protests Spread Nationwide
The Drought in Britain and the Strange Request from the Government to Delete Old Emails
Category 5 Hurricane in the Caribbean: 'Catastrophic Storm' with Winds of 255 km/h
"No, Thanks": The Mathematical Genius Who Turned Down 1.5 Billion Dollars from Zuckerberg
The surprising hero, the ugly incident, and the criticism despite victory: "Liverpool’s defense exposed in full"
Digital Humans Move Beyond Sci-Fi: From Virtual DJs to AI Customer Agents
YouTube will start using AI to guess your age. If it’s wrong, you’ll have to prove it
×