Commuters turn back as travel chaos bites

SOME commuters tried to use what little of the Tube system was running but they were met with delays, queues and then a desperate scramble for taxis and overcrowded buses. Many gave up and went home while others plodded on through the chaos to get to work.

Damien Lane, a financial services consultant based in Hol-born, said: "I'm going home - if I can get back there in time to do any work." Paola Fagherazzi, who was trying to get from Hendon to her publishing job in Vauxhall, gave up at an overcrowded bus station.

She said: "I came back to London from Milan last night. I should have stayed there. Why spend the day shivering in the cold and becoming sick?"

Commuters arriving at East Finchley station in the hope of a limited service were directed across the road to the bus stop.

City bank employee Sheila Stevens was catching the first of three buses to get to Farringdon. She said: "I get to my desk by 7am. Today I'll be lucky if I'm in by nine."

Sarah Turner, 26, and boyfriend Stewart Austin, 24, took the overground train from Balham after checking the signs at the Tube station. Both of them were travelling on to work at Blackfriars and were trying to find a taxi.

Sarah said: "It is a bit of an inconvenience but the company has said it will pay for the extra expense."

Lucy Bromage, 29, an investment banker from Pimlico, was left stranded trying to get to work in Canary Wharf. She had tried booking cars and flagging black cabs but to no avail. She said: "It's so frustrating. I might go home to bed but I think there's a coach laid on somewhere, if I can find it."

Maria Aracama, an air stewardess, had to board a coach for Stansted because she couldn't get a Tube train to Liverpool Street for the express rail service. She said: "It's all a panic this morning. I will be late but so will everybody else."

Secretary Jackie Peters, from Guildford, said: "Reaching Waterloo was the easy part. I don't think I've a cat in hell's chance of getting a cab, so I might try to reach the City by boat." Yet despite the inconvenience, many commuters were broadly supportive of Aslef's action. Jon Myers, an insurance broker, said: "As long as it's just the one day I can live with that."

Researcher Toni Adams, 28, from Hornchurch, said: "I sympathise with the action if the drivers are thinking of public safety, so I'm prepared to put up with it. But it would be nice if someone addressed these concerns so we don't have to go through this again."

Mark Turner, 31, an investment analyst from Greenford, was less sympathetic.

"I thought it might be difficult today, but not as bad as this. I think Prescott, Livingstone and the unions need their heads banging together."

P IF YOU have just struggled into work or given up and stayed at home you can share your misery with thousands of fellow commuters by accessing www.thisislondon.co.uk and clicking on Have Your Say. Are the Tube drivers right to strike over safety or should Mayor Ken Livingstone condemn their actions? Let us know your views.

'HORRENDOUS' JAMS BLOCK ROADS

COMMUTERS who abandoned the Tube and struggled into London by car today were warned that they faced a "horrendous" return journey tonight.

"People who struggled in this morning should plan carefully to stagger their journeys home by leaving earlier or later," said an AA Roadwatch spokesman. "Although the effects won't be as bad as they were this morning, drivers should expect delays as there's a lot more traffic on the roads."

Worst-hit during the morning rush hour were the western section of the M25 and the M4, where traffic levels were around 30 per cent heavier than usual.

The A40 also ground to a halt near Gypsy Corner, forcing thousands to leave the major route and find alternative roads into London instead.

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