Subway strike bogs Londoners

LONDON - A strike on the London Underground crippled much of the transport network Wednesday, disrupting the plans of millions of travelers and forcing commuters to cram into overcrowded buses and trains or walk or cycle to work.

The 48-hour strike, which began Tuesday evening, was called by two unions to protest plans to cut about 950 jobs and close all ticket offices as part of a restructuring that the London transportation authority says could save about $81 million a year.

The strike shut down several parts of the subway system, which normally has some 3.5 million passenger trips each day. The lines that remained open were operating on a reduced schedule.

Despite promises of extra bus service, long, snaking lines built up Wednesday at bus stops.

There was frustration, too, for drivers.

“Traffic congestion was far more intense and went on much longer than normal,” said Chris Lambert, a traffic analyst at Inrix, a company that monitors traffic flows.

An 11-mile traffic jam on one of the main arteries into the west of the city did not clear until about noon, Lambert said.

Transport for London, the city’s transportation authority, described the strike as “completely unnecessary” and said it was running at 35 percent of normal underground service.

Front Section, Pages 5 on 02/06/2014

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