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Germany’s rail strike halts transport

11 March 2011 01:00 (UTC +04:00)

Baku-APA. German train operators have gone on a six-hour strike during the morning rush hour, causing a major disruption in freight and passenger services across the country, APA reports quoting Press TV.

About 800 GDL operators walked off the job on Thursday after a fierce pay dispute with the state-owned national railway.

Hundreds of trains and subways came to a complete halt in dozens of cities. About 300 goods trains were also stuck in a backlog, causing the disruption to continue even after the end of the strike at 9:00 a.m. GMT, Reuters reported.

GDL Chief Claus Weselsky considered the halt as the first, among a series of those planned by the union, to gain success.

"We have brought up to 90 percent of freight traffic and more than 80 percent of passenger traffic to a halt. The effect is enormous," Weselsky added.

On February 22, a similar two-hour strike which was staged after months of negotiations for a salary increase, triggered numerous cancelations and delays.

The GDL currently represents 26,000 operators across Germany.