100,000 suffer rail chaos

More than 100,000 commuters were stranded today as union leaders chose the busiest rail travel day of the year to mount a 24-hour strike by train guards.

Rail chiefs said the strike was "cynically timed" by Bob Crow's RMT union to cause maximum disruption as people tried to get away for the Easter holidays.

The industrial action caused widespread disruption throughout the country with London commuter routes, including those operated by Connex South Eastern and South Central, among the worst hit.

Some long-distance services were cancelled and a number of lines in Scotland were forced to close completely. Across the country more than 2,000 train services have been cancelled and more than 40 stations throughout Kent and Sussex closed as a result of the strike, forcing commuters to take to their cars.

This is the third one-day strike in the rapidly escalating dispute over the role of the guard and RMT leaders today warned of more stoppages. The union's controlling executive committee is to meet and is expected to announce more strike dates. The union says the rail companies are trying to turn the role of the guard into a "Kit-Kat seller" instead of concentrating on passenger safety.

Up to 2.5 million people were expected to travel today with the great getaway beginning in earnest at lunchtime. As concerns over the war with Iraq begin to recede, the travel industry is predicting the number of Britons flying abroad for the Easter weekend may smash all records.

Almost two million people are preparing to travel overseas on planes, trains and ferries. According to the Association of British Travel Agents, the number of people who have booked package holidays has surpassed all expectations.

Stephen Bath, ABTA president, said: "The travel industry has gone through a very difficult period in the last few months. However I am delighted to see that holidaymakers have not allowed the current situation to put them off taking a well-earned break this Easter and are travelling in greater numbers than ever."

Motoring organisations warned that key holiday routes in the UK would come under intense pressure from lunchtime today as millions of holidaymakers head for coastal areas and theme parks.

The AA expects 10 million drivers from London and the South-East to take to the roads this weekend. It said the worst times for travel will be this afternoon and tomorrow morning - traffic will be heavy on Monday as millions of motorists return home.

AA spokeswoman Rebecca Rees said: ""Easter has come later this year and
everyone is ready for a holiday, so we are expecting large numbers of
people to take to the road from as early as lunchtime today."

London airports are expected to be particularly busy with 360,000 passing through Gatwick between today and Monday.

The busiest time is expected to be today when 85,000 people will be using the airport. Heathrow, Luton and Stansted airports are expected to be equally busy.

So far this year, bookings for package holidays have been relatively slow but Thomson and Thomas Cook reported a sudden surge in bookings in the past week for Easter and summer.

A spokeswoman for Thomson said: "Last weekend we did see an increase
in bookings as people became more confident about the global situation.
"They have also realised there are a lot of good deals out there if they book now and this has helped push up our Easter figures. We are hoping to see this situation continue to improve over the coming weeks. "

British Airways today announced a string of special offers. More than 1.5 million tickets to destinations including New York and Miami will be sold at a discount of up to 60 per cent. The tickets will be valid for use between this Sunday and December.

Rail chiefs warned that with the strike affecting services, trains will be packed with tens of thousands more extra travellers heading out of London for the Easter break.

Many long-distance trains to Scotland, the Midlands and South-West are already booked solid and passengers were warned to make sure they reserved their seats before travelling. Jay Merritt, of the Association of Train Operating Companies, said: "We strongly advise people to check that seats are available before they set out."

Peter Cotton, managing director for ScotRail which operates 2,000 services a day, denounced the rail dispute which he said was "leaving the industry open to ridicule".

He said the strike was a "needless and pointless dispute about the railway rule book", adding: "Would local bus staff leave passengers on the pavement to go on strike about the Highway Code?"

The dispute began after changes to the national rulebook which switched responsibility for a train from the guard to the driver in the event of an emergency. Union leaders say the motivation for this was to give guards more time to sell food and drink.

Bob Crow, general secretary of the RMT, said: "The 12 train operators have made absolutely no move to bring this dispute to an end.

"Following the lead of the eight companies who have already signed up to restore the full safety role of the guard would cost absolutely nothing. It is time for these companies to acknowledge that drivers drive and guards guard."