The RMT has called for three days of strikes over job cuts, pay and conditions. The union wants the threat of compulsory redundancies removed and a pay rise in line with soaring inflation.

For their part, Network Rail and the train operators argue that modernisation is vital if train companies are to survive - and that means reducing overheads and embracing technology.

Rail travel fell massively during the pandemic and has struggled to return to previous levels, with more people working from home and - arguably - some residual reserve around crowded commutes.

Just three years ago, commuters accounted for nearly half of all rail travel.

A year later, as the pandemic took hold, that share fell by 10% - and is yet to recover.

Figures below are England only and are by calendar year.

With passenger numbers still down by one fifth - and revenue dropping, companies are looking to make savings.

Network Rail plans to cut 2,500 maintenance jobs as it tries to save £2bn over the next two years.

The RMT argues those jobs are critical to safety. It says its members, who include maintenance operatives, ticket inspectors and cleaners, are struggling to cope with the rising cost of living.

So who is paid what on the railways?

As we've been hearing, some people going to Glastonbury festival have decided to travel there by train despite the rail strike.

We spoke to some early birds heading to Glastonbury this morning, who were surprised to find quiet queues at London's Paddington station.

Lorna Gordon
BBC News Scotland correspondent

Queen Street station in Glasgow is, if anything, even quieter today than it was on Tuesday. No rush hour here.

The message that almost all trains have been cancelled seems to be getting through and fewer people seem to have attempted journeys.

There's still a limited train service between Glasgow and Edinburgh running from this station today.

Two of those planning to travel are Robert and Jefri Franks. They are from Kansas City in the United States.

They've already missed four days of their holiday because of delays and cancellations on their flights to get here. When I asked them how they felt about today's industrial action on the railway network, they said they were fine about the strike, and after so many cancelled flights why not a train strike too? It was, they said, “par for the course for their holiday so far”.

The Glasgow to Edinburgh line is one of the five Scotrail routes running in Scotland, covering just a small part of the central belt.

ScotRail staff are not on strike, but they are dependent on Network Rail staff who are on strike, and this means 90% of services within Scotland have been cancelled.

There are no trains north of the central belt or south into the Borders, and there's only a limited service south into England.

Image source, PA Media

Train services are disrupted across Britain for the second time this week as a result of the strike, with half of the rail network closed.

Here's the state of play with rail services in England today:

Limited services

(trains not operating on certain routes/some stations closed):

• Avanti West Coast
• Chiltern Railways
• CrossCountry
• Grand Central
• Great Northern
• Great Western Railway
• Greater Anglia
• Hull Trains
• London Northwestern Railway
• Northern
• South Western Railway
• Southeastern
• Southern
• West Midlands Railway

Image source, PA Media

Reduced services

(trains running less frequently/not serving some routes):

• c2c
• East Midlands Railway
• Heathrow Express
• London North Eastern Railway
• Lumo
• Stansted Express
• Thameslink
• TransPennine Express

No services:

• Gatwick Express
• Merseyrail

Tim Donovan
BBC London, Political Editor

There are no tube strikes in London today and most lines are operating a good service according to TfL's website, external.

Meanwhile London Mayor Sadiq Khan has called on the RMT union and Transport for London to resume talks - in order to avoid further strikes on London Underground.

He was asked by Tory assembly member Susan Hall whether transport staff, who she said had had a pay rise of 8.4%, generous pensions and free travel, should have gone on strike on Tuesday.

“I think strikes are a sign of failure but employees are entitled to negotiate. The way to resolve issues is to get back round the table,” said the mayor.

Khan also called for a funding deal which could lift the uncertainty hanging over TfL and its staff.

The latest temporary finance arrangements expire tomorrow.

The level of road congestion in rush hour today was higher than at the same time last week in London, but was lower or relatively stable in several other major cities, according to new analysis.

Data published by location technology firm TomTom indicates that in the capital, congestion levels were at 83% as of 09:00 BST, up from 75% on 16 June.

Congestion figures show the proportion of extra time needed for journeys compared with free-flow traffic conditions.

Traffic in Manchester is also up, but to a lesser degree - with just a 2% rise to journey times when compared to a week ago.

And similar data from other major cities indicate a fall in traffic, with travel times down 4% in Glasgow, while in Liverpool journey lengths have fallen by 2%.

Image source, PA Media

More than 40,000 Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union members from Network Rail and 13 train operators are walking out for the second of three planned strikes today, but what is behind the dispute?

The latest talks between the unions and rail employers were held yesterday in a bid to resolve the dispute over jobs, pay and conditions - but they broke down.

The RMT is calling for a pay rise of 7% - while employers have offered a maximum of 3%.

The union believes any rise should more closely reflect the soaring rate of inflation - that's currently at 9.1% and is expected to rise to 11% in the autumn.

But the government has said pay rises which keep pace with inflation will only exacerbate inflationary pressure, keeping it higher for longer - and causing more misery, particularly for the poorest in society.

We want to hear your experiences of journeys today, and what alternative travel arrangements you have made. You can get in touch in the following ways:

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In some cases a selection of your comments will be published, displaying your name and location as you provide it unless you state otherwise. Your contact details will never be published.

Phil Mackie
Midlands correspondent, BBC News

Hana Subhan from Cwmbran in south Wales attends Hereford Sixth Form College.

Ordinarily it’s a 40-minute train journey, during which she catches up on revision.

Today her mum, an NHS worker, is driving her halfway and a friend is picking her up and taking her into college.

She doesn’t know how she’s getting home yet, and doesn’t know how she’ll get to college tomorrow for her final exam, because although it’s a non-strike day her train isn’t running.

"It’s really, really stressful. I’m usually a person who’s quite organised, I like to know about things weeks in advance.

"When I got told about the train strikes, just last week, it just sent my anxiety through the roof."

Image source, PA Media

If you're just joining us, here's a roundup of the main developments so far this morning:

• Thousands of rail workers have walked out on the second day of strikes this week in a dispute over pay and conditions
• Passengers in England, Scotland and Wales are facing disruption to their journeys as only one in five trains are running in most areas
• Stations across Britain have been quieter than normal, with most commuters planning ahead to work from home, while Glastonbury Festival-goers seem to have avoided any travel chaos so far
• Talks between rail companies and unions are under way again after discussions failed to reach a settlement that could avoid industrial action today and on Saturday
• RMT rail union boss Mick Lynch has blamed government for hampering progress, a claim Transport Secretary Grant Shapps has refuted

Jamie McIvor
BBC Scotland News Correspondent

Very few services are running today in Scotland, none at all north of the central belt.

ScotRail staff aren't on strike but the strike at Network Rail means they can't run most of their services.

It's more or less exactly like it was on Tuesday, with limited services on just five routes around Glasgow and Edinburgh, including the service between the two big cities.

Those services will be finishing far earlier than usual in the late afternoon.

The advice is do not travel by train unless you have no alternative, and to go online to see what trains are still running.

There are also some limited cross-border services running today.

Glasgow's Queen Street Station is looking very quiet this morning with only a dozen or so passengers at 07:00 BST - it seems fewer people have been caught out by the strike today.

Barry Caffrey
BBC Radio London

It’s relatively quiet here in East Croydon this morning.

Up to eight trains per hour are running between here and central London and Gatwick Airport.

People trying to get to the airport have allowed lots of extra time for their journeys - like Carolyn Jones and Nikolas Dost, who are travelling to Madrid today for a holiday.

They left Camberwell in south London early this morning to get a bus to East Croydon.

But they decided to take a taxi to the airport from here as they weren’t sure they’d get on to the trains, which are all expected to be very busy.

We've been hearing from the RMT union this morning, who are blaming ministers for the collapse of talks to prevent today's strike action.

They have accused Transport Secretary Grant Shapps of "wrecking" negotiations by refusing to allow Network Rail to withdraw redundancy threats, but what does the government have to say?

On Wednesday Shapps said the claim that he was responsible for the failure of the negotiations was "a total lie" and insisted he had no involvement in the talks.

He said: "The RMT continues to deflect from the fact that the only people responsible for the massive public disruption this week is them.

"I want to urge [RMT general secretary] Mick Lynch and his members to stop wasting time making false claims in the media and instead return to the negotiating table so an agreement can be reached.

The Department of Transport has also previously said the rail industry is leading the negotiations, but a contract seen by the BBC says that train operating companies' handling of strike action is "subject to the secretary of state's direction".

Image source, Getty Images

The roads are not as busy as expected this morning, with many commuters opting to work from home rather than drive to the office.

Frank Bird, a senior network planner with National Highways, says people have changed their travel plans for the week in response to the strikes.

Employees have adapted to working remotely, meaning the impact of the disruption is not as bad as it would have been before the pandemic, he says.

He adds that a "significant number" of commuters have opted to stay off the roads this morning, with traffic far lighter than planned for.

As for the evening rush, Bird is "cautiously optimistic" that the roads will remain calm later.

Image source, PA Media

The Rail Delivery Group, which is representing rail companies in talks with the unions, says it wants to agree a framework for reforms that would see issues such as pay resolved across the board.

Chairman Steve Montgomery told the BBC that reforms within the industry would result in modernisation and a reduction in costs, which would ultimately lead to an increase in workers' pay and a reduced burden on the taxpayer.

A key bone of contention at the ongoing talks is compulsory redundancies, with Mick Lynch from the RMT saying this issue remains a sticking point for unions.

Montgomery said he believed that once reform was worked through, "hopefully we can accommodate everyone who wants to stay in the industry".

He added: "We just need to work through the processes and see how many people are left and hopefully nobody will be required to be compulsorily redundant".

Victoria Bourne & Steffan Powell
BBC News

The first train from Paddington to Castle Cary has departed.

There were nine carriages but only a few dozen people heading to the Glastonbury Festival were on board.

Railway staff have told us they were expecting it to be much busier due to the strike action but, to use another transport saying, it was all plain sailing.

Jim Roberts from Hitchin and his girlfriend were the first in the queue as he arrived at 5:30am - more than two hours early.

He told us he was relieved as he thought more than a 100 people would be there at that time.

He said he could now look forward to the festival and seeing Diana Ross, who’s performing in this year’s legend slot.

Victoria Bourne & Steffan Powell
BBC News

The BBC's Victoria Bourne and Steffan Powell are making their way to Glastonbury Festival today. We'll be reporting on their journey's progress and the people they encounter along the way.

Just five trains are running today from London's Paddington station to Castle Cary in Somerset, the nearest railway station to Glastonbury Festival which opened on Wednesday.

Ordinarily there would be around 20 trains running to the rural station, but that number has been significantly reduced because of this week’s industrial action on the train network.

So far it looks like the crowds have steered clear of train travel and found another route to the festival. Early on Thursday morning, Paddington is relatively quiet with just a few people waiting for the first train headed toward Castle Cary - and Worthy Farm.

Around a dozen people with reassuringly big rucksacks are waiting in a separate part of the station designated for festival-goers, some equipped with camping chairs.

People such as Jennie Stevens and Mark Howard were expecting it to be much busier and are happy that they will get a seat on the train - and those camping chairs won't be needed on board.

Image source, PA Media

ScotRail are only running services on five routes across the country between the hours 07:30 and 18:30.

These routes are:

• Edinburgh to Glasgow via Falkirk High: two trains per hour
• Edinburgh to Bathgate: two trains per hour
• Glasgow to Hamilton/Larkhall: two trains per hour
• Glasgow to Lanark: two trains per hour
• Edinburgh to Glasgow via Shotts: one train per hour

In a bid to reduce pressure on the limited services ScotRail is advising customers to only travel if they really need to and to consider alternative options where possible. It Is also urging people to check their journeys, external in advance.

Anyone who has bought a ticket they are unable to use will be able to claim a full refund, external.

It is believed many people have chosen to work at home on strike days, with Transport Scotland reporting no significant increase in road traffic on Tuesday.

First Glasgow said there was a 13% increase on bus passengers in the city compared with the same day last week.

Read more here.

Image source, Getty Images

The government has announced plans to change the law to enable employers to use agency staff to cover staffing gaps during strikes.

Ministers say the measure, which needs Parliament's approval, would limit the impact of future strikes.

But opposition parties and unions have criticised the plan, arguing it would undermine pay and working conditions.

Rail workers are holding their second strike this week - the largest action of its kind in decades - in a dispute over jobs, pay and conditions, with just 20% of services expected to run.

The Rail, Maritime and Transport union is calling for a pay rise of at least 7% to offset the cost of living crisis, but employers have offered a maximum of 3%, on condition that the union accepts new working practices.

You can read the full story here.

Negotiations between unions and rail companies are picking back up today after talks aimed at avoiding the strikes broke down.

RMT general secretary Mick Lynch says the union is "working constructively" with Network Rail and other operators on settling the dispute but "very serious agenda items" remain unresolved.

Speaking to the BBC, he said a guarantee that mandatory redundancies will not be imposed on workers remains a sticking point for the union.

Lynch blamed the government for scuppering progress on settling the dispute, and said it was "a silent partner" at the negotiating table.

It would be more useful if government joined the negotiations and dealt with the situation directly, he said.

He also indicated that the next strike day coming up on Saturday may not be the last.

If a settlement is not reached on the dispute, he said it is "extremely likely" that more industrial action lies ahead.