Tube Drivers Call Off Strikes After Improved Offer

A planned strike by Tube drivers in London, initially set to halt all London Underground services on Thursday, has been called off after talks between Aslef officials and Transport for London (TfL) management led to a 'significantly improved offer'.

Aslef had announced two 24-hour strikes for Thursday and the following Tuesday, which would have caused major disruption for commuters.

This decision follows a similar move by the RMT union, who called off strikes earlier.

Aslef's Finn Brennan announced the suspension of the strike after successful discussions, with details of the new offer to be reviewed internally.

TfL COO Claire Mann expressed relief over the resolution, emphasizing the offer's fairness.

The dispute, part of the 2024 pay deal negotiations, involved discussions on pay increase and working conditions similar to those of the Elizabeth line, as well as TfL pensions.

Tube drivers have been offered a 4.5% pay increase, raising the average salary to over £69,000.

This development is a positive turn for TfL, which recently recovered parts of its service infrastructure following a cyber-attack and received a government funding boost for new Piccadilly line trains.