SOUTHERN has agreed to a possible resolution of its dispute with train drivers’ union Aslef that protects the safety-critical role of the guard, the union’s deputy general secretary insisted yesterday.

Simon Weller told the Star that the proposed resolution could work because it guarantees a second person on the train, but that the deal is far from the “glorious defeat” or “total humiliation of Southern” that some people had expected.

An increasingly bitter row has seen a number of strikes for weeks on end over plans to remove guards from trains that Aslef said was a critical safety issue.