ARRIVA Trains passengers were last night afforded some much-needed respite ahead of the next round of strike action.
The company yesterday restored the bulk of its services with trains finally replacing buses on a number of routes.
Arriva had set itself a target of restoring 97 per cent of its timetable by the end of the month.
A stripped-down winter timetable had been in place since last October to cope with a temporary driver shortage problem.
The restoration of most services was welcomed by passenger groups.
However the back-to-normal situation is only expected to last a few days.
Members of the RMT union plan a third 48-hour stoppage on Friday and Saturday in a dispute over pay.
The Transport Salaried Staffs' Association, which represents about 170 Arriva station and office staff, is expected to join the walkout.
All sides in the dispute, sparked by a wage increase for Arriva drivers, appear to have reached a stand-off.
Ian Walker, of the North-East branch of passenger campaign group Rail Future, said: "We are happy that Arriva is finally getting back to normal.
"But at the same time we are disappointed that a further stoppage hitting services is likely to occur.
"The only way round this must be for more negotiations to take place."
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