London Underground - Tube strike set to hit Boxing Day shopping in London ; Retailers, who saw shoppers deterred by the big freeze in the build-up to Christmas, are hoping to see thousands of bargain hunters come through their doors as the sales get underway on Boxing Day.However, shoppers in the capital will need to balance their desire to beat the new year VAT rise with the potential for chaos on the London Underground network.
Tube drivers affiliated to the trade union Aslef decided to stage a one-day walkout after their demands to be paid triple time and receive a day off in lieu for working on Boxing Day were rejected.
A legal bid to halt the strike failed and Tube bosses have been left trying to put together a skeleton service with a vastly reduced number of drivers.
Mike Brown, managing director of London Underground, described the strike action as 'disruptive and completely unnecessary'. He added: 'We will be running as many Tube services as possible on Boxing Day, as well as London's 700 bus routes and some river services.'
It is expected all Tube lines will be open, but that service levels will be subject to what Transport for London described as 'significant disruption'. The one exception is the Metropolitan Line, which is closed for scheduled engineering works.
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