Capital chaos in 48-hour Tube strike.

A STRIKE by thousands of London Underground workers got under way last night after last-gasp talks to try to resolve the bitter row broke down.

Members of the Rail Maritime and Transport union walked out at the start of a 48-hour stoppage which will cause travel chaos across the capital.

The union expects the entire network to come to a halt, causing huge problems for millions of commuters and visitors and costing businesses tens of millions of pounds.

Leaders of the union met London Underground (LU) managers at the offices of the conciliation service Acas yesterday but failed to find a breakthrough in time to stop the strike going ahead.

The union said the talks broke down just a few minutes before the strike started and accused LU of 'pulling the rug' from a proposed deal aimed at settling the dispute..

RMT leader Bob Crow said: "RMT negotiators spent all afternoon and early evening at Acas putting together a deal which could have settled the dispute, only for London Underground to bring in lawyers at the last minute, who pulled the rug from under a workable agreement.

"We expect the strike to be solidly supported." Transport for London urged people to check before they travel, to stagger their journeys and to consider alternative ways of getting to work such as walking and cycling.

Contingency plans were put in place, including extra buses, taxi-sharing at major rail stations and free river shuttle services.

Transport Commissioner Peter Hendy said: "We regret the disruption the strike will cause to passengers." The dispute is over pay, jobs and disciplinary issues, including the sacking of two drivers..