BERLIN: German rail travellers on Saturday were hit by delays and disruptions on one of autumn’s busiest travel weekends as the train drivers’ union began one of its largest strikes in recent years.

Only about a third of traffic on major lines was running, the Deutsche Bahn said in a statement, adding that service would be assured on around 30 per cent of regional and city lines.

Launching its biggest strike since 2008, the GDL union called on its members to walk out from 3pm on Friday on freight services and from 2am (0000 GMT) on Saturday on long-distance and regional passenger services.

The stoppages — on traditionally one of the busiest weekends because of a school holiday — are due to last until 4am (0200 GMT) on Monday.

The union accused national rail operator Deutsche Bahn of stone-walling in talks over its demands for a five-percent wage hike and a shorter working week of 37 hours.

Deutsche Bahn slammed the new industrial action — the fifth in recent weeks — as excessive, accusing GDL chief Claus Weselsky of putting his own “delusions of omnipotence” and “thirst for power” before the interests of the train drivers and passengers.

“With its 50-hour strike on a holiday weekend, GDL and its chairman Claus Weselsky has lost all sense of proportion,” the company said in a statement.

“GDL is running amok,” it added, pointing out that the strike’s impact on autumn school holidays.

Holidays were starting this weekend in seven of Germany’s 16 regional states, while in four other regions, the vacation period is coming to an end or still running.

Deutsche Bahn said it had put on standby night trains with sleeping berths to help stranded travellers in Hamburg, Berlin, Frankfurt and Munich, although there had been little demand for them on Friday-Saturday night.

Published in Dawn, October 19th, 2014