Tube Strike Sparks Chaos In London (PICTURES)

LOOK: Tube Strike Sparks Chaos In London

The streets of London are this morning filled with sad-looking and wet commuters frantically trying to navigate their way to work via unfamiliar transport routes.

Millions of passengers have hit travel chaos today because of a strike by London Underground workers which has crippled Tube services.

Horrendous pictures have highlighted the severity of the strikes, with commuters pictured packed onto trains in "inhumane" conditions and "caged" in stations "like animals."

Members of the RMT and TSSA unions walked out at 9pm last night for 48 hours in protest at the closure of ticket offices, with the loss of several hundred jobs.

Services were hit last night immediately after the strike started, and disruption is expected to be widespread today.

As an added bonus, train passengers were also warned of problems because of a return to the wet and windy weather which has devastated travel across the UK.

London Overground trains became so crowded that passengers were unable to board them at stations in north-west London.

To add to the chaos a packed Overground train at North Wembley was delayed after a passenger pulled an emergency cord.

Southeastern trains said the forecast weather, after the wettest January for a century, presented a risk of further flooding, landslips and falling trees.

As a result, Network Rail has put in place a 40mph speed restriction across parts of the Southeastern network today.

Many have already taken to Twitter to voice their woe:

Picket lines will be mounted across the capital today outside Tube stations, many of which will be closed.

Politicians have condemned the industrial action, with Conservatives again calling for changes to employment laws covering the numbers voting for strikes in a ballot.

London's mayor Boris Johnson called the strike "pointless" and urged the unions to call it off and return to talks.

As the row raged, commuters and other passengers faced travel misery until services return to normal on Friday.

Mr Crow, this morning said: "As we expected the action is rock solid this morning and has reduced the network to a skeleton service with only a few ghost trains running through closed stations.

"That is simply a reflection of the staff anger at attempts to bulldoze through cuts to jobs, services and safety which would reduce the Tube to a dangerous, hollowed-out shell."

Another 48 hour strike is planned next week.

Business groups warned the strikes will cost London's economy tens of millions of pounds.

Good luck weary commuters.

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