Second rail strike to go ahead on Thursday as talks break down

A second 24-hour rail strike will go ahead in Scotland on Thursday after talks between the RMT union and railway employers broke down.

The RMT accused UK Transport Secretary Grant Shapps of "wrecking" negotiations by refusing to allow Network Rail to withdraw redundancy threats.

Passengers have been facing further disruption due to the fallout from the first of three strikes on Tuesday.

ScotRail said it was caused by the staggered reopening of signal boxes.

The operator is urging people to check their journeys in advance.

The latest talks to end the strike broke down on Wednesday afternoon.

RMT members are scheduled to stage two further strikes on Thursday and Saturday.

ScotRail's temporary timetable has 1,576 services per day but on Wednesday it planned to run 1,312 services, a reduction of 264 (17%).

It also issued specific advice for fans of The Eagles, ahead of the legendary group's concert at Murrayfield.

• Strike talks resume as travellers face more delays

• Network Rail strike: Passengers stay away as nine in 10 trains cancelled

• PM calls for 'compromise' to end rail strike

• Which ScotRail trains will run during the strike?

• Major rail strikes to go ahead after talks fail

About 40,000 Network Rail staff are believed to have walked out at midnight on Tuesday in a dispute over pay, working conditions and redundancies.

ScotRail cancelled 90% of its services while cross-border services were also badly affected.

An RMT picket line outside of the Network Rail Maintenance Delivery Unit and West of Scotland Signal Centre in Cowlairs, Glasgow

After a meeting of the Scottish government resilience room (SGoRR) on Tuesday, Deputy First Minister John Swinney called for "more urgency" from UK ministers and the Department for Transport.

He added: "The lack of action being taken by the UK government is a dereliction of duty."

A spokesman for the DfT said it was encouraging the unions and industry to agree a deal to call off the strikes.

"Although the government is not the employer, ministers remain extremely close to the issues on both sides and the ongoing discussions," he said.

"We will also continue to look at everything we can do to minimise disruption to protect the travelling public who are the innocent victims in this."

Murrayfield concert

The dispute does not involve ScotRail staff but many of the Network Rail staff taking part in the industrial action occupy safety-critical roles.

Fans attending The Eagles concert at Murrayfield have been urged to travel to the stadium early where possible and consider their travel options when heading home.

There will be a limited number of trains departing Edinburgh Waverley and Haymarket after the gig finishes at 22:30 due to the temporary timetable currently in place.

Customers are being advised space on board these services is limited and no rail replacement transport is available.

Businesses in Scotland have been bracing themselves for an impact on their takings as a result of the strike.

Gavin Stevenson runs The Gellions pub in Inverness

Leon Thompson, from UK Hospitality Scotland, predicted the sector was set for "in excess of £50m of losses" this week.

Gavin Stevenson, owner of The Gellions pub in Inverness, said the strikes were the latest "devastating blow" to the hospitality sector.

He told BBC Scotland: "There is a lot of businesses out there just now that have taken on huge debts to get through the Covid pandemic."

As well as tourists Mr Stevenson said Inverness usually attracts visitors from other parts of the Highlands, such as Elgin and Nairn, at weekends.

But he added many businesses have been hit by cancellations linked to the strikes.

Mr Stevenson also said the region faces the further challenge of having less frequent bus services compared to the central belt.

Only a few people were at the usually packed Central Station in Glasgow on Tuesday

This dispute between the RMT union and the companies which run Britain's railway centres on pay, job losses and changes to workers' terms and conditions.

The RMT said Network Rail's plans to cut 2,500 jobs would put safety at risk and has warned that strikes could continue over the next six months.

Network Rail Scotland spokesman Nick King said: "We are still keen to reach a resolution with the union, postpone further strike action if we can, but any deal that is done has to be fair on both our workers and on the taxpayer, who ultimately funds Network Rail's operations."