RAIL passengers are facing further misery with a fresh bout of strike action on the Arriva Trains Northern network.

The Rail Maritime and Transport (RMT) workers' union announced that conductors would stage a 24-hour strike on March 28 and 48-hour strikes on April 5 and 6 and May 3 and 4.

Its 600 members are also to be balloted on further action such as work-to-rule days, a ban on overtime and days when fares will not be collected.

The latest move in the on-going dispute over conductors' pay was immediately attacked by Arriva, which said it was concerned that two of the strike dates were close to bank holidays.

The RMT has already held several days of industrial action in recent weeks which has crippled Arriva's train services across the region.

The announcement of further action followed a meeting of the union's executive committee, in London, yesterday.

RMT general secretary Bob Crow said: ''The mood among our members is determined and the strikes have been solid from the start."

Stan Herschel, the union's regional organiser, disputed the company's claim that 40 per cent of services ran during a 48-hour strike last Friday and Saturday.

''Even if you include the extra buses that ran, to say that 40 per cent of services ran is complete rubbish.''

The union has so far rejected a three per cent basic pay increase plus five per cent based on productivity gains for conductors in a bid to achieve pay parity with drivers.

Julian Evans, of Arriva Trains Northern, accused the RMT of cynically disrupting travellers' bank holiday plans.

He said: "We regret the decision to take further industrial action, causing more disruption for our customers.