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A driverless tube proposal would make Boris win a re-election campaign.

- Jp Floru, London, UK, 10/06/2009 08:44
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Boris, put the fate of the RMT into the hands of the London public - lets put the future of the Union to public vote. Perhaps then we'll see a different side to the RMT.

- Tara Danischevsky, United Kingdom, 09/06/2009 23:11
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In a year of pay freezes, reduced salaries, crashed economy, redunduncies and having to work harder for less money, I find it completely impossible to have any sympathy for anyone striking for more money.

It's disgusting.

- Christina, South London, 09/06/2009 11:32
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It's about time that control of the tube was put under control of the British Army. Sack all tube workers for any strike, get rid of Bob Crow. London deserves a tube that works all year round - holding honest, hard working commuters and businesses to ransom is unfair. If I strike at work I'll get sacked so why can't we sack the tube workers. If the tube was run by the army the soldiers would turn up on time, the repairs done quickly and efficiently without waste and ticket prices would also come down because someone would not be getting paid over £30,000 to push a handle forward and backwards.

I am fed up with tube workers and their strikes - the prices on the tube are insane and the service gets no better in fact it gets worse.

One last point whilst many businesses are making employees redundant or asking to cut pay why should tube workers get an increase - start living in the real world...

Get rid of bob crow and the unions, enforce contracts for all tube workers that says that if they strike they will be sacked. Cut their pay by 15%, Cut tube fares by 50%,

Nuff said

- Ben Davies, London, 08/06/2009 07:38
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Seriously, if you haven't got the intelligence to realise there is no platform when the wrong doors open then you probably haven't got enough intelligence to top up your oyster card in the first place. I would under stand if the train was moving. £38000 a year to sit on your ass, next you'll be wanting an expense account.

- Paul, queens park, 29/05/2009 00:13
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I was dismissed from my job as a Guard at golders Green, on the Northern Line, four days before Christmas 1994. The dismissal was due to I having breached the irregular attendance procedure. I went through all the preliminaries in an attempt to get my job back. I was absolutely devastated. I appealed to the Industrial Tribunal and failed, but won an appeal at the E.A.T. London Underground Limited conceded tge case to unfair dismissal and I was awarded no compensation other than the Basic award. I was a sole litigant due to non union membership and through trial and error I commended myself. Although I had previously been a member of both the R.M.T. and A.S.L.E.F. they were equally adamant in their stand of no union no representation, at which point one would most certainly stand by Tfl managements similar stance.I was booked absent when indeed at work on two occasions but there was no hue and cry concerning victimisation or even how this could have come about.In the light of Carl Campbell making a mistake by not coming clean what about the management involved at Golders Green who did not come clean. Carls body clock was out of joint and you have to know what that means, before you can even think of what goes through your mind at and when something like what did occurs. Ones stress levels are at breaking point. In the name of what may be classed as humanitarian, give carl back his job. Yours - one who knows, what this man is going through. Thank you.

- Patrick Gerald Hughes, London, 22/05/2009 13:49
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I work as Customer Service Staff for National Rail,
Until i started receiving a mountain of abuse from commuters, i had sympathy for them during the strike.
Unlike Monday - Friday 9 - 5 workers, frontline staff have to work over a 7 day week on shifts, receivng abuse and violence from ingnorant individuals, and have managers that don't seem to care.
This is why Tranport Workers go on strike, as speaking directly to managers over issues does not solve anything!

- Rmt Member, London, 22/05/2009 00:21
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Come on Boris Johnson, pull your finger out. Where's that no-strike agreement you promised us? The Mayor of London appears to be asleep on the job at the moment.

- Mickey, Borough, 21/05/2009 17:17
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So why would they deserve more money? Are they working harder?? NO!! All their user passengers are losing money thanks to the tax policies etc. from government and they want want want...

- Moy, London, 20/05/2009 14:44
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Just like the dismissed train operator on the Victoria Line I myself was also dismissed by L.U.L.on the 21/12/1994.I was a guard on the Northern Line and based at Golders Green. I had not Union support consequence to having removed myself from R/M/T to A.S.L.E.F but the administrative transfer had broken down. I went through all the procedures that this unfortunate train operator has gone through with no success. I was a sole litigant all the way through my claim at the unfair dismissal and appeal courts. I asked both unions for assistance but was refused. I eventually won my case for unfair dismissal but was only gave the basic award enhanced to £5000.0. on appeal. My point is at where Management mention concerning the agreement between themselves and the R.M.T. remonstrating that such becomes the buy all sell all. In my case L.U.L. breached their own irregular attendance guidelines and at the point that I proved such, their counsel conceded the case to factuality that I was booked absent when indeed at work - thus mellowing down the remedy award.I hope that the driver of the tube train is reinstated and if the papers of my case are need for support let that person know my e-mail address. I know exactly what the stress levels are concerning this assault. In my case the agreements on the irregular attendance procedure were falsified and therefore in this case absolutely meaningless whether or not the driver is a fully paid up member. Best wishes from one who knows.

- Patrick Gerald Hughes., London/England, 20/05/2009 14:41
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"Bob Crow is not stupid" - Anon, London

Bob Crow is stupid.

- Jo, London, 20/05/2009 13:30
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Oh stop moaning all of you honestly!
If you live between Walthamstow Central - Seven Sisters get National Express East Anglia Trains in to work and change at Stratford or Liverpool Street to join the underground.

Those of you that live south of the thames.

Use Southern to get you in to Victoria where you can use the Circle Line for king's cross and to also change at Embankment for Oxford Circus, Warren Street and Euston

You can also use South West Trains to get you in to Waterloo where the Jubilee line runs direct to Green Park, Bakerloo Line for Oxford Circus, Northern Line for Warren Street and Euston.

- Anon, London, 20/05/2009 13:09
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The new Victoria Line trains that will be introduced from the end of this year will have this safety equipment. So the RMT's demands have already been met.

The 'safety' call is bogus as the issue is already being addressed - this is solely a RMT dispute over a sacked colleague.

Tube drivers are in safety-critical roles and are paid and trained as such. Making safety-critical errors and then denying that they happened, avoiding due process and trying to cover them up, is in my eyes unacceptable, and I remain to be convinced by the RMT as to why such a dishonest cover-up should be permitted.

- Mark Lee, Vauxhall, 20/05/2009 13:05
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Henrietta, I agree with you, in Ireland when they want to strike they (get this LU staff) still work- I know, crazy, but keep the barriers open. No one gets charged but it puts their point across very well, AND they get the public sympathy.

Now LU strikers have a think, do you want more members of the general public to behave like they've just come off the Eden Lake film set and are still in character when going throught the stations, or would you rather have them backing you and fighting your corner?

- S-M Hearmon, London, UK, 20/05/2009 11:32
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I'm willing to risk it, Kev. Thirty odd years commuting and I've never got off the train on the wrong side yet, even in the hazy days of the 80s when trailblazing for what is by no means a recent phenomenon known as binge drinking.

- Paul, London, 20/05/2009 11:15
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Richard London.

Many of us do get the sack for people not getting hurt, as you put it.

It's called working in the wealth creation sector, that's the private sector that makes the money, they spend in the public sector (in case you don't understand how it works.

IN THE REAL WORLD, not on that sad planet called RMT World.

Are most of the public aware by the way tube drivers earn about £38K yes folks about £38K a year.

- Richard Penry-Browne, London, W8., 20/05/2009 11:02
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Who was it who said we are all bloody peasants now!Paul.I do agree with your assertion that they should be on strike all the time,or at least till we have forced LU to treat us with respect as human beings as opposed to cattle,but then i suppose you get the respect you deserve.

- Kev, London-UK, 20/05/2009 09:54
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"The London public are only ever concerned with their own selfish little world" Too bloody right we are! I've got a job to do and if I can't get to work the job won't get done, we'll lose customers and I'll be heading down to the Job Centre. If Crow's lot are so worried that they can't open doors on the correct side of the train they should be on strike all the time - what makes this Thursday so much more dangerous?

- Paul, London, 20/05/2009 09:15
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The London public are only ever concerned with there own selfish little world,ie i got to get to work,o poor me how i will suffer etc etc.They should get behind the staff that are actually taking action to improve safety for all.London underground management has a cavalier attitude to its staff and the public.We have the most expensive public transport system in Europe,the most over crowded,you wouldn't pack a herd of cows in like we are packed in to carriages.And maybe if the public and those employed by LT were to act in unison with one voice we might just might be able to get a transport system we deserve.Shame on you the apathetic self centred public of London.

- Kev, London-UK, 20/05/2009 08:24
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People won't be laughing when someone you know gets injured or even fatality injuried when they step out the wrong door and gets crushed underneath the train. How many times have you seen people in the train go to the doors, pressing the button when they should be going to the doors on the other side?! People even press the button when the train has stopped even if it hasn't reached the station yet!

- Tony, london, 20/05/2009 03:24
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Thanks again London Underground. Now I have to hang around at finsbury park waiting for buses to get home. You claim to be striking over the safety of passengers but you clearly have not thought about my personal safety or that of plenty of others in my situation. Grow up. Striking only disrupts the lives of the LU customer. Raise awareness by all means but this is just going to annoy the people you need support from.

- Rachel, Seven Sisters, 19/05/2009 22:37
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If the workers really want to cause havoc they should leave all gates open along all stations on the Victoria line so that people can travel free for the day.

- Henrietta, London, 19/05/2009 21:33
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I Think London Underground Staff are entitled to strike once in a while, especially the way they get treated by certain members of the public!

To the person that wants a driverless train system, that has already been tried with the Docklands Light Railway, and even they need onboard staff!
Drivers' do operate victoria line trains, the only thing they can't control is the speed!

- Anon, London, 19/05/2009 15:57
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I would like to send my full support to all Victoria Line drivers' during the strike action.
As for the passenger that appear to be to selfish to understand why the Victoria Line is set to close, it will be closed because all other London Underground Lines' have door safety equipment, which stop mistakes being made where the wrong set of doors being opened, the Victoria Line does not have this, so the RMT has perfectly reasonable grounds to strike over both the door safety equipment, and what is evidently unfair sacking of one of their train driver's.
Bob Crow is not stupid, he defends the very people that contribute to running your train service, especially when many passengers treat them appallingly!

- Anon, London, 19/05/2009 15:47
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London Underground staff are a disgrace - they go out of their way to be bad mannered because they know they will not be disciplined

the last strike that lasted one week several years ago only resulted in thousands of commuters getting on their bikes and walking through the parks - thousands of travellers realised that the tube did NOT have the monopoly we all assumed on how we get about the city

London Underground have not had a major strike since because they know they will lose long term customers to the tune of thousands and thousands of fares

- Grahamb, London, 19/05/2009 15:29
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As a former tube driver myself, I can vouch for how easy it easy for anyone to make a mistake on the front of a train. Find me a driver who hasn't at some stage gone through a red signal, overshot a platform by some margin or even fallen asleep in the cab momentarily. Humans make the occasional mistake- any office worker who has pressed the wrong key on a keyboard makes, in truth, the same accidental mistake that a tube driver does. If you wish to see somebody sacked for making an inadvertent error, an error that saw no-one injured, then you should accept the same justice meted out to yourself next time you make some bodge up at work that caused no-one any harm.

- Richard, London, 19/05/2009 13:50
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- Roy, England

Let me clarify, let's have a 'fully' automated driverless tube system.

- Frank, Home Counties, England., 19/05/2009 13:47
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Striking again for more pay and less work (or use of brains).This is getting tiring. Unhelpful and miserable staff, slow and air less trains, unreliable service and no communication - let’s give them all a pay rise!

Or, on second thoughts, lets fire the b**ody lot of them.

- David James-Smith, London, 19/05/2009 13:01
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Bob Crow talks about Bullying but he's the biggest bully of all! Holding Londoners to ransom once again because he can't get his own way.
I'll look forward to a journey that will take me three times as long to get to work, with people pushing and shoving like animals, being told i can't use the overground as 'it's not their fault' the tubes are not working then being packed onto a bus when i can eventually get one, which could be half an hour or more.

- C, London, 19/05/2009 12:44
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Forgive me for not having all the facts, but I believe this dispute centres around train safety. Supposedly a "driver" of one of the automatic trains opened the doors on the wrong side of the train at a station and was disciplined. Mistakes happen and I assume due process was followed to investigate and follow up the incident.

Why is this then a striking matter? Why should millions be invested to stop such a fluke mistake from occurring again because of an inept employee? Why isn't anyone with any sense knocking Bob Crow's head very hard against the wall to make him see how stupid he is?

- Nobby Clark, Perth, Scotland, 19/05/2009 11:47
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Bob Crow a Londoner in a 'time warp', Supporter of both Tommy Sheridan and Arthur Scargill, Millwall supporter, says it all really !!!!

- Nick Holland, glasgow, 19/05/2009 11:35
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Dont worry it is raining! They will soon call it off as there is no sunshine to sit out in!!!

- Not Exactly A Looney Lefty!, The real world, 19/05/2009 11:09
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the TFL unions are far far too strong. I support better conditions for staff but they seem to be striking over every single thing. You knew what the job was then you took it so why complain about it now.

If was I getting paid 30k+ a year to sit on my back side and press buttons every so often I wouldnt be complaining and striking all the time. They need to get the public on their side.

It will take someone to be killed from mass overcrowding to sort this continued problem out.

- Alanj, London, 19/05/2009 09:54
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Er Frank, the Victoria line *is* automated and driverless, and always has been since it was opened in the 60s. The only reason a man is retained in the cab to open and close the doors and press the "start" buttons is because the public wouldn't wear not having a human to override the computer in an emergency.

- Roy, England, 19/05/2009 09:53
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More 1970s nostalgia. Good innit.

- Bj, London, 19/05/2009 09:47
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Come on Boris sod the electric car push, let's have an automated driverless tube system. The socialists have done enough to bankrupt this country and destroy our society.

If Aslef are quite happy about the employment of people who get confused about which side of the tube train to open the doors on, then commuters are in serious trouble.

Hmmm ... think I will get of here, TAXI!

- Frank, Home Counties, England., 19/05/2009 09:19
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