Tube Strike Cripples London

(NEWSER) - After failing to reach an agreement with management, London Underground workers will go on a two-day strike starting tomorrow evening, Reuters reports. The dispute over worker safety could affect millions of commuters and tourists. London transportation authorities say they will add extra buses and ferries to accommodate the disruption. More»

Underground out of service, but strikers have little support

(NEWSER) - London commuters faced a trial to get to work today as a subway strike pushed millions onto buses, bikes, and boats. The 48-hour strike began last night after talks broke down with one of the Tube's unions over disciplinary measures against two train drivers. Some lines are running irregularly, however, as dissenting Tube workers showed up to work in defiance of the union, reports the Evening Standard. More»

Tube labor action tangles up entire city

(NEWSER) - The union representing London’s Tube workers has called off a threatened 3-day strike after a day of shutdowns that hobbled the city’s transit system, but commuters still face lingering aftershocks. Transit of London, which runs the Underground, and the RMT union say they made sufficient progress yesterday to restart nine of the 12 lines that had been sidelined. More»

UK kindergarten teacher downs wine bottle at lunch

(NEWSER) - It’s Bad Teacher come true: A kindergarten teacher in London got so smashed during lunch that her coworkers called an ambulance. Her principal thought the stumbling 51-year-old, who had tried to teach after drinking, was suffering a stroke; paramedics soon discovered the truth. A teachers’ council has found her guilty of “unacceptable professional conduct,” the Daily Mail reports. More»

Flight forced to turn around when it, shockers, comes loose

(NEWSER) - Ryanair crew members used tape to fix a pilot’s window before takeoff—only to turn around when the tape came loose 20 minutes into the flight, the Sun reports. “We were kept in the dark, and were terrified. I could see guys taping in the windscreen with what looked like duct tape or gaffer tape,” said a passenger on the London to Latvia flight. In the air, “the pilot said due to damage on the windscreen, we were going to have to turn back.” More»