Downing Street said Londoners would be “rightly fed up” as commuters turned to the other trains, buses and bikes – or just stayed at home – as strikes by the RMT union closed the underground on Monday.
The numbers attempting to use any public transport were down by about a fifth, according to Transport for London (TfL) data, but that still left many crowding on to bus and overground services or congested roads at the start of four days of commuter misery.
Buses and the Elizabeth line were taking the strain as the strikes, by RMT train and station staff, left virtually the entire underground network suspended.
The worst impact for congestion and transport is expected on Tuesday, as more people still typically work from home on Mondays and Fridays.
Docklands Light Railway trains will not run on Tuesday or Thursday because of strikes arising in a separate dispute.
On Monday, journeys on the Elizabeth line were up 31% and the London Overground up by 23%, with about 12% more bus journeys, compared with the same Monday last year, TfL said.
Its website was out of action for much of Monday morning as commuters in the capital looked for alternative routes to work. TfL’s online journey planner and its TfL Go app struggled under the weight of searches, failing to load and returning error messages or no results.
Congested roads added considerable time to bus journeys, as well as for those turning to private cars and taxis.
The ride-hailing app Uber warned users of higher fares because of increased demand. Rides were quoted at multiples of normal levels, with some journeys costing about £50 for a five-mile trip in the capital.
Two wheels proved a better option for many: TfL’s cycle hire scheme had more than 20,000 hires by 3pm, double the previous Monday’s rate. The e-bike rental company Lime said it had 58% more users on Monday morning, while the rival Forest said it had doubled its rush-hour usage.
About 10,000 members of the RMT are taking part in rolling industrial action in the tube row, as the union attempts to secure a shorter working week as part of pay negotiations. Signallers and controllers will strike on Tuesday.
TfL has made a pay offer of 3.4%, which it urged the union to put to its members in a fresh ballot. It has said it cannot meet demands to cut hours below the current 35 a week.
Downing Street called on both sides to get back to the negotiating table. The prime minister’s official spokesperson said: “I think Londoners will rightly be fed up with the disruption from tube strikes this morning – as parents try to drop their kids off at school, get to hospital appointments, get to work – and RMT and TfL need to get back around the table, work together to resolve this dispute in the interests of passengers.”
Claire Mann, the TfL chief operating officer, said: “We are bitterly disappointed that the RMT has chosen to go ahead with this action despite our fair, affordable pay offer. We have been clear that their demand for a reduction in the working week is unaffordable and impractical, and we urge them to put our offer to their members.
“We know how economically damaging strike action can be for businesses, especially in the hospitality and leisure sectors, and have worked extremely hard to deliver as much service as possible to keep London moving despite the strike action this morning.
“We will continue to do so throughout this week but we are unable to say with certainty what that service will look like on a day-to-day basis due to the different groups of staff striking on each day.”
An RMT spokesperson said: “We are not going on strike to disrupt small businesses or the public. This strike is going ahead because of the intransigent approach of TfL management and their refusal to even consider a small reduction in the working week in order to help reduce fatigue and the ill-health effects of long-term shift work on our members.”
Support for the union came from the 4 Day Week Foundation. Joe Ryle, its campaign director, said: “It’s a bold and necessary stand, and these workers deserve widespread support. The five-day week is a century-old model that no longer reflects how we live and work today.”
Underground services are not expected to resume until 8am on Friday should the strikes continue.
