RMT has ruled out further Tube strikes for now as fresh talks with Transport for London (TfL) are set to take place next week.
Sources told The Standard that union representatives and TfL bosses are expected to return to the negotiating table, with no new walkouts currently planned.
Four days of strike action have taken place so far this year — on April 21 and 23, and again on June 2 and 4 — while planned walkouts in May and later this month were shelved following last-minute negotiations.
The ongoing dispute between the two sides centres on TfL’s proposal to introduce a compressed four-day working week, with hours reduced from 36 to 35 hours, but drivers working longer shifts on days they work.
TfL has reiterated the proposal is voluntary and those who do not wish to work the four-day week do not need to do so.
But RMT is arguing the working day would be too long under the proposals, risking driver fatigue and potentially compromising safety, and wants to negotiate a 32-hour week over four days.
A TfL spokesperson said: “We look forward to meeting the RMT next week at ACAS, as well as at our regular meetings with our trade unions, to discuss the details of the proposals and a way forward with this dispute.”
It comes as new figures reveal the mounting impact the dispute is having on London's hospitality sector, with one in five venues reporting sales declines of more than 30% during this week's Tube strikes.
Hospitality venues saw sales fall by around 13% on Thursday, making it the most damaging strike day of the year so far, according to restaurant analytics platform Tenzo.
That was markedly worse than the worst-affected day during April's strikes, when sales dropped by around 8.7%.
The torrential rain that swept across London this week may also have exacerbated the issue.
Transaction volumes fell by as much as 11.7%, while average customer spend remained largely unchanged, suggesting the strikes are deterring people from travelling and visiting venues rather than reducing their willingness to spend once there.
“Transport strikes don’t just create inconvenience for travellers; they fundamentally change customer behaviour,” co-founder of Tenzo Christian Mouysset said.
Despite no services running on the Circle and Waterloo & City lines and major disruption across the Piccadilly, Metropolitan and Central lines during this week's strikes, 90% of Jubilee line services continued to operate.
Transport for London said Londoners and visitors to the city were still able to travel despite the strike action on Tuesday adding that more than 60% of drivers came to work across the day.
The transport authority said Tube usage was down 41 per cent on Tuesday, one of the two strike days this week, as commuters altered their travel plans in response to the disruption.
But demand shifted to other parts of the network instead.
Bus journeys increased by 5%, London Underground services by 12% and journeys on the Elizabeth line rose by 18%.
