Bus drivers primarily covering west London are due to walk out on a number of days in January
(Picture: Jeremy Selwyn)Bus passengers in London faced disruption on Wednesday as bus drivers working for Abellio walked out in a dispute over pay.
The action, which began in December, is due to continue on Thursday and a number of other days this month.
The walkout mainly affected services in south-west London where buses were running on about 20 of Abellio’s 60 routes - though many had very few vehicles.
TfL said that 144 buses were running on Wednesday – compared with 595 buses on a non-strike day.
Routes affected included the 3, 27, 45, 63, 68, 109, 130, 156, 195, 196, 201, 207, 267, 270, 278, 315, 322, 350, 367, 381, 407, 415, 427, 433, 464, 482, 490 and 969.
The bus strike has been called by Unite members at Abellio, and is despite the offer of a 12 per cent pay rise – equivalent to an extra £100 a week, taking a typical driver’s salary to £40,000.
Jon Eardley, managing director of Abellio London, said: “We urge Unite to recognise Abellio’s 12 per cent pay deal and encourage their members to resume normal services.
“The Abellio pay deal comes with no conditions and sees bus driver basic pay rise by an average of £100 per week and over £5,000 per year, bringing an established bus driver’s salary to around £40,000 per year. We also currently pay one of the highest rates in London for new bus drivers.
“The pay deal has now been implemented to ensure that all drivers benefit from a significant uplift in salary, despite Unite not allowing members the opportunity to express their views via a ballot.
“We are deeply disappointed that despite this offer Unite plan to continue strike action over Christmas and into the New Year, bringing further disruption to hundreds of thousands of Londoners”
The bus strike comes as Londoners faced a second day of commuting misery, as tens of thousands of workers at Network Rail and train operators continue the first of two 48-hour walkouts this week.
Across the country around half of railway lines were closed on Wednesday and only a fifth of services were running as the Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT) continued its industrial action crippling the transport network.
Train drivers in the Aslef union will strike on Thursday before a second two-day RMT strike begins on Friday.
In London, Wednesday’s strike also affected the Elizabeth Line which was running a severely delayed service between Paddington and Reading/Heathrow, and between Liverpool Street and Shenfield.
The walkout was also hitting the London Underground on Wednesday morning with several services part suspended, including the Bakerloo and District lines. The London Overground was due to operate a reduced service until 6.30pm, while the strike also caused severe delays on the Circle line.
Unite has been approached for a comment.
