A RAFT of strikes on the Northern railway line have been announced.

Following strike action from rail union RMT last Saturday, workers will again be on strike for the next four Saturdays over a long-running dispute over the role of guards on trains.

RMT general secretary Mick Cash said: “RMT continues to make every effort to get serious and meaningful talks going with Northern but the company are not interested and would prefer to continue to bury their heads in the sand regardless of the impact on the travelling public.

“German-owned Northern Rail want to run nearly half a million trains a year without a safety critical guard on board in a move that would wreck both safety and access ‎to services and they should listen to their front-line staff and pull back from that plan immediately."

He added: “We thank the public for their support and understanding throughout this dispute over rail safety and access and the union remains ready for genuine and serious talks.”