Mick Lynch, the general secretary of the RMT union, insisted that the strikes had managed to prevent bosses from pushing through redundancies and controversial reforms such as mass ticket office closures.

He also claimed that the union had provided inspiration to workers in other sectors.

However, the ongoing dispute over pay and conditions has caused widespread disruption, with around 20,000 workers, including guards and rail managers at 14 firms, striking on Friday.

Saturday's walkout by ASLEF members will affect people travelling to the FA Cup final at Wembley, the Epsom Derby in Surrey, the England v Ireland test match at Lord's, and Beyonce's Renaissance tour date at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

Despite the disruption, Mr Lynch said that strikes would be called off as soon as a "fair" deal was agreed.

However, he added that train companies were to blame for the disruption, and that the action had already achieved results, as railway firms "haven't been able to implement any of their plans." The RMT and ASLEF have rejected pay offers put forward by the government, on the grounds that proposed terms on conditions and pay were not good enough, especially amid ongoing high inflation.

But some other disputes have been resolved, including a separate row involving RMT workers at Network Rail, after members voted to accept a revised pay offer in March.

A spokesperson for the Rail Delivery Group (RDG), which represents the UK's train service providers, hit back at the RMT's claims and said "common-sense" reforms were "long overdue." They said, "There have been three pay deals offered which the RMT executive have reneged despite their negotiators in the room agreeing the terms.

We've said all along we just want railway workers to have their say on the fair and affordable offer of up to a 13% rise over two years, plus guarantees on job security." The RDG added, "The only thing they [the RMT] have achieved is continu