Train strikes: Uber fares rocket and Bolt app crashes in London as demand soars due to Tube & rail walkouts
UBER fares have rocketed and the Bolt app crashed as Brits try desperately to get to the office during the worst rail strikes in a generation.
Bolt users were faced with an error message this morning as train and Tube services shut down.
Meanwhile, those who took an Uber are facing a financial drubbing.
A three-mile journey from Paddington to King's Cross with the service was estimated to cost £27 at 8.45am.
An Uber spokesperson said: “We are expecting significant increases in demand as a result of strike action across the Tube network this week.
"We are informing drivers of the expected increase in demand to help ensure there are enough cars out on the road.”
The service uses "dynamic pricing" which increases automatically when there's heavy demand, he added.
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"As a result of the strike action currently taking place on the National Rail and London Underground network, we have capped the level that prices can surge, and all users are shown the price of their trip before they book," he said.
"We are also working hard to ensure that there are enough drivers out on the road to match demand.”
Brits across the country are facing a nightmare journey to work as a £1billion "lockdown" imposed by militant rail unions force workers into cars and onto buses - with main roads already jammed.
Brits have been warned they should NOT travel as just one in five trains are running and entire regions - such as Cornwall and Dorset - have been completely cut off.
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But those trying to get help from TfL and National Rail were hit with an error message as their websites collapsed this morning.
The Chiltern Railways website is also down.
Tube bosses have already warned commuters not to attempt to travel if it can be avoided.
"We are advising customers to avoid travelling on Tuesday, June 21, when strike action will severely disrupt most of TfL's and national rail's services.
"If you need to travel, you are advised to complete your journey by 6pm.
"Disruption on all Tube lines will continue through the morning of Wednesday 22 June.
"No London Underground services are expected to run before 08:00, when they will begin running with delays.
"We encourage customers to avoid making journeys until mid-morning."
There are problems around the country as thousands of members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union at Network Rail and 13 train operators walk out today, Thursday and Saturday.
It comes as:
- The Transport for London and National Rail websites crash
- Richard Madeley has blasted Mick Lynch on Good Morning Britain - after the union boss was accused of being a "Marxist"
- But Lynch hit back - accusing Madeley of spouting "absolute twaddle"
- Millions of people will be affected today as fewer than one in five services run
- Grant Shapps confirmed Cobra meetings will take place in a bid to end the chaos
- Brits are warned not to attempt travelling by rail if they can avoid it
They took action after last-ditch talks failed to resolve the bitter dispute over pay, jobs and conditions, with all sides blaming each other for the lack of progress.
Transport Secretary Grant Shapps confirmed this morning that Cobra meetings will take place to resolve the crisis - but warned Britain is back in the "bad old days" of union strikes.
And a "summer of discontent" may only just be beginning - after unions threatened to stage more crippling strikes for months to come.
Furious ministers have accused union barons of inflicting “misery and chaos” on millions with their “callous” three-day action amid claims cities and towns will go into "lockdown".
But RMT boss Mick Lynch was bullish during an appearance on Good Morning Britain today, accusing rail companies of "escalating the dispute" with talk of redundancies.
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"You don't have to be a Marxist to work out there's a problem at the heart of our society, and it's up to unions to being back balance and equality," he warned.
Among the millions of people set to be affected today are patients who will be unable to get to hospital, teens missing their GCSEs and Glastonbury revellers.
Ros Morgan, chief executive of the Heart of London Business Alliance, said: "The rail and Tube strikes will impose another lockdown on the West End at a time when central London's economy needs all the support it can get."
Boris Johnson will tell his Cabinet today they have to face down hardline unions or risk wrecking the economy.
He will say: "The unions are harming the very people they claim to be helping.
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"By going ahead with these rail strikes, they are driving away commuters who ultimately support the jobs of rail workers, while also impacting businesses and communities across the country.
"Too-high demands on pay will also make it incredibly difficult to bring to an end the current challenges facing families around the world with rising costs of living."
