Misery as strike halts trains

Leaders of a rail union and a train company clashed today over a pay dispute as thousands of people suffered travel misery at the start of a 48-hour strike.

Arriva Trains Northern was forced to cancel most of its 1,600 services across northern England because of the walkout by members of the Rail Maritime and Transport Union.

Stations were left deserted and some commuters decided to drive to work early to beat the expected chaos, although the AA reported that some roads around Leeds were quieter than expected.

Arriva insisted it had offered the same pay rise to guards and other station staff as to drivers but the union claimed the cause of the dispute was a "massive" difference between pay.