Talks were being held in London today (March 29) to head off next week's threatened rail strike in the UK.
The talks in London between leaders of the major transport union, the RMT and the Transport Salaried Staffs' Association (TSSA) and Network Rail, which runs the British system, are expected to last all day.
The two unions have called a four day strike from next Tuesday, April 6, of signallers and maintenance workers.
The dispute is over Network Rail's plans to cut 1,500 jobs which the unions say will jeopardize passenger safety.
Network Rail, which has rejected this claim, said it wanted to achieve the job losses through voluntary redundancies.
If the strike goes ahead, it will be the first nationwide stoppage since 1994.
Bob Crow, the RMT general secretary, said: "We go into the talks in a positive frame of mind and committed to reaching an agreement which protects safety-critical jobs, safe working practices and which delivers a secure future for both our members and the travelling public the length and breadth of the UK rail network.
"We are determined to secure a settlement which addresses all of the issues at the heart of our disputes with Network Rail."
Robin Gisby, Network Rail's director of operations and customer services, said: "Passengers want more trains - starting earlier and running later - with fewer buses and more trains at weekends.
"To achieve this Network Rail needs to change the way the railway works. We want proper discussions with the unions' leadership about implementing changes.
"Negotiations, not strikes are the way forward.
"This proposed strike is not about safety. Britain's railway is safer than ever. The issue of safety is a smokescreen from a union leadership stuck in the steam age.
"Our contingency plans are well advanced and aim to keep as many trains running as possible. But a national rail strike will have a severe impact on services and on Britain."
www.networkrail.co.uk www.rmt.org.uk www.tssa.org.uk