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| First Great Western passengers warned of strike turmoil | First Great Western passengers warned of strike turmoil |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| Tens of thousands of commuters have been warned to expect severe disruption on First Great Western (FGW) trains as a 48-hour strike takes hold. | Tens of thousands of commuters have been warned to expect severe disruption on First Great Western (FGW) trains as a 48-hour strike takes hold. |
| High-speed services between London, the West of England and Wales are likely to be halved during the industrial action, which began at 18:30 BST on Wednesday. | High-speed services between London, the West of England and Wales are likely to be halved during the industrial action, which began at 18:30 BST on Wednesday. |
| Overnight services between London and Penzance were cancelled. | Overnight services between London and Penzance were cancelled. |
| The dispute is over plans to dispose of guards and buffet cars on FGW's new Hitachi Inter City Express trains. | The dispute is over plans to dispose of guards and buffet cars on FGW's new Hitachi Inter City Express trains. |
| The company said the main impact of the industrial action would be felt by commuters on Thursday morning after members of the RMT union, who are in dispute with the train operator, were instructed not to "book in" for shifts. | The company said the main impact of the industrial action would be felt by commuters on Thursday morning after members of the RMT union, who are in dispute with the train operator, were instructed not to "book in" for shifts. |
| FGW is operating a revised timetable and has warned that trains will be much busier than usual. | |
| Services between London, the West and South Wales are expected to be reduced by more than half and some suburban rail services will be cancelled. | Services between London, the West and South Wales are expected to be reduced by more than half and some suburban rail services will be cancelled. |
| The industrial action is likely to affect fans heading to the first Ashes Test match in Cardiff. | The industrial action is likely to affect fans heading to the first Ashes Test match in Cardiff. |
| The strike coincides with a separate, 24-hour stoppage on London Underground, which has closed the entire Tube network. | The strike coincides with a separate, 24-hour stoppage on London Underground, which has closed the entire Tube network. |
| Strike timetable changes | Strike timetable changes |
| Speaking after talks on Wednesday, Mick Cash, RMT general secretary, said: "The company still feel that the configuration of the new super express trains is out of their control and that it would be in their best interests to have 'driver-only' operations and to remove the buffet cars. | Speaking after talks on Wednesday, Mick Cash, RMT general secretary, said: "The company still feel that the configuration of the new super express trains is out of their control and that it would be in their best interests to have 'driver-only' operations and to remove the buffet cars. |
| "That position is totally unacceptable and the union is clear that the design of the new fleet of trains is a matter for First Group and that there is still time to modify the rolling stock." | "That position is totally unacceptable and the union is clear that the design of the new fleet of trains is a matter for First Group and that there is still time to modify the rolling stock." |
| A FGW spokesman said: "Progress has been made, sadly not enough progress for the RMT to be able to cancel their strike at short notice." | A FGW spokesman said: "Progress has been made, sadly not enough progress for the RMT to be able to cancel their strike at short notice." |
| The first Hitachi trains will run on the Great Western main line from 2017 and the East Coast main line from 2018. | The first Hitachi trains will run on the Great Western main line from 2017 and the East Coast main line from 2018. |
| The new trains are being introduced under the Intercity Express Programme (IEP) on routes between London Paddington and Oxford, Bristol and South Wales. | The new trains are being introduced under the Intercity Express Programme (IEP) on routes between London Paddington and Oxford, Bristol and South Wales. |