Southern Rail workers have announced yet another round of strike action as their disputes over staffing and driver-only trains continue.

Members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport union at Southern Railway, alongside workers at Merseyrail and Arriva Rail North, will walk out on May 30, the day after the next Bank Holiday.

The Southern dispute started over a year ago, with RMT members having already taken 31 days of strike action.

Talks were held on Monday between the RMT and Southern, without any breakthrough to the row over changes to the role of conductors to on-board supervisors (OBS).

The union said it had been told by the company that more than 8,200 trains a year will run without an OBS on board.

General secretary Mick Cash said: "RMT members on Southern Rail have been fighting for safety and access to rail services for over a year now.

“We have met with the company but there is a massive gap of over 8,000 trains a year the company has confirmed will run without an OBS on board.

"That represents a serious safety and accessibility risk and short of the guarantee of a second safety qualified member of staff on Southern services we have no option but to confirm a further day of strike action.

"It is now down to Southern, and the contract holders in the Government, to face up to their responsibilities and engage in genuine and serious talks that address our issues."

Andy Bindon, human resources director at Govia Thameslink Railway, Southern's parent company, said: "We are hugely disappointed that once again the RMT has called a strike, particularly since we put a further reasonable offer to the union today.

"The RMT's proposals would mean cancelling trains and reducing service levels to our passengers.

"Our service levels are stabilising at the highest we've seen in years and we cannot agree to anything which will jeopardise running trains and the service to our passengers.

"With passenger numbers doubling every 20 years, railway capacity is being addressed by a UK-wide railway modernisation programme that necessitates change.

"We ask the RMT to help us to underpin and maximise train frequency and capacity now and for the future."