Southern Rail and RMT bosses meet in bid to avert more strikes

RMT and Southern Rail bosses met today to try to prevent more strikes as the dispute nears its first anniversary.

The two sides remain at loggerheads over the changing role of guards as train drivers take control of the doors.

Both said they “welcomed” the chance to talk but there seemed little hope of agreement to help Southern’s long-suffering passengers. The talks are scheduled to last into tomorrow.

The dispute has turned into the longest in the history of the railways — on Wednesday the RMT will stage a demonstration outside Parliament to mark the one-year anniversary.

Unions claim driver-only operation is unsafe, allegations robustly denied by Southern, which says the system is widely used and approved across major parts of the UK.

The RMT and Aslef, the drivers’ union, retain mandates to order further walkouts. The RMT has staged 31 strikes by guards and Aslef six. Each of the drivers’ strikes brought the network, used by more than 300,000 passengers a day, to a halt.

RMT members from all over the UK are expected to attend Wednesday’s demonstration.