A ROW has blown up over why local rail passengers are having to bus to Aldershot on strike days when trains are being run out of the sidings and turned at Farnham.

With South West Trains and the RMT in gridlock over pay disputes and disciplinary procedures, this latest anomaly has infuriated the Alton Line UsersÕ Association (ALUA).

ÒIt is ridiculous. People are having to take a three-quarters-of-an-hour bus drive or are driving to other main-line stations and having to fight for parking spaces when it would make more sense to start the service from Farnham as the trains are actually there,Ó said ALUA chairman, Chris Campbell.

ÒNo can doÓ, according to South West Trains spokesman Barry Johnson, who points out that, because of industrial action by RMT workers, the company has been forced to look at the resources available and has made the decision where and when to run trains and where to run a replacement bus service.

As a result there is no train service available from Farnham which, along with Alton and Bentley, is being provided with a two-hourly bus service to Aldershot.

The apparent intransigence of SWTÕs reasoning has sparked anger among local commuters, forced to wait for buses while empty trains run up and down the line from Farnham to Aldershot.

It is felt, by ALUA, to be adding fuel to a fire of discontent which could, it is feared, have damaging long-term results.

While South West Trains is refusing to let the RMT Òhold its passengers to ransomÓ by deploying management to work as guards and station staff, ALUA believes it will merely prolong strike action.

ÒIt is a good way of operating trains and getting commuters to work but it is not the answer,Ó according to Mr Campbell.

He believes the Òinfantile behaviourÓ of SWT and RMT management in failing to sort out their differences is fast losing public support - not only is it forcing people off the railway but it is also said to be losing them jobs.

ÒSo far people have been tolerant but if the next 48-hour strike goes ahead on February 12 and 13 it will result in an entire week of disruption which could prove the last straw. There will be mutiny - people have had enough,Ó warned Mr Campbell.

He is advocating a Òhead to headÓ confrontation in front of television cameras with an ACAS representative present, so that both sides can Òthrash it outÓ in public.

ÒIt is a ridiculous situation when you have Andrew Haines of SWT and Vernon Hince of the RMT standing not 100 yards apart during MondayÕs press conference at Waterloo Station and yet they are not willing to talk to one another. TheyÕre behaving like school kids,Ó said Mr Campbell.

But, while his request has been put to both BBC South and Meridian, it looks like a non-starter.

A spokesman for the RMT believes that, while well intentioned, it would not help. ÒIt is not something we would consider. It would not be productive to have two people arguing in public, that is not the way to settle a dispute,Ó he said.

For once the SWT appeared to agreed. ÒA public debate will not resolve these issues,Ó said Mr Johnson. The stumbling block, he says, is that the RMT wonÕt accept that the April 2001 pay negotiations are closed.

ÒWe are, however, more than willing to sit down with the RMT and talk about long-term pay,Ó pointed out Mr Johnson who re-emphasised his companyÕs stance that the 7.6 per cent pay deal over 18 months was a far better deal than the RMT had negotiated elsewhere in the industry.

ÒMany passengers facing retrenchment or pay freezes or cuts would be happy to get such a good deal,Ó he said.

The second area of conflict is over disciplinary procedures. The RMT wants to go to arbitration over the case of a sacked driver. He, however, is said to have requested that the case be tried by employment tribunal. ÒSWT believes this to be the correct forum for him to air his grievance and not through industrial action by the union,Ó said Mr Johnson.

ÒIf we go to arbitration we would be handing over our safety procedures to a third party which we canÕt do. We are a train company and our first priority is safety,Ó said Mr Johnson .

As the gridlock continues, ALUA is urging local rail users to support a call for peaceful protest on March 1. Rather than backing the Better Rail Advisory CommitteeÕs call for a passenger strike, because it is felt many rail users cannot afford to take further time off work, ALUA members will be refusing to show rail tickets on that day.