Sports fans face rail chaos today – with another year of strikes in prospect.
Train drivers represented by Aslef will bring network services to a standstill for the second time this week in a bitter dispute over pay.
The union’s 11th walkout since last June will hit fans trying to make it to the Epsom Derby, FA Cup Final and England’s Test match at Lord’s today.
The strikes, which are thought to have cost the economy at least £5billion, could drag on for a further year because talks have collapsed. A senior rail source said: ‘This isn’t ending any time soon. It’s easily going on until the end of the year and potentially even until next summer.
‘Certainly the train unions aren’t going to agree to the reforms that the operators need to bring in to balance the books, so the operators will just have to carry on regardless and push it through.’