Hundreds of thousands of London commuters face more disruption after bosses at Southern Railway rejected the offer of a three-month strike “amnesty” from a union.
Southern has made clear that changes to the role of train guards — at the centre of a long-running dispute with the RMT union — will begin from August 21 as previously stated.
A spokesman for the rail operator said: “We welcome the suggested suspension of industrial action, but we don’t need three months to resolve this.
“We are ready to sit down with the RMT and discuss a way forward that we believe that they, our employees and customers will welcome, and can bring an end to this dispute.”
Commuters — with more than 120,000 travelling into central London every day — have been subjected to regular delays, cancellations and chronic overcrowding as the dispute between Southern and the RMT continues.
It has led to angry protests by passengers.
Talks are now expected but the two sides remain poles apart. The company — part of Govia Thameslink Railways (GTR) — says the changes, which include driver-only operated trains, will mean more staff will be available to help travellers.
However, the union insists safety standards will be reduced.
It will now meet to decide what to do next, with further strikes remaining an option.
An RMT spokesman said: “The union awaits a formal response from the bosses at GTR, not some unattributed quotes from their spin doctors.
“Southern is now under massive political and public pressure to respond positively to the union’s fair and straightforward offer of talks.”
The company is currently cancelling up to 341 trains a day across the franchise.
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