German railway operator Deutsche Bahn and union officials were to meet for last-minute talks on Sunday to prevent new strikes, but the company said rail traffic would be disrupted on Monday even if a deal was reached. After a first round of negotiations on Saturday, the head of train drivers union GDL said he was optimistic a planned strike could still be avoided if Sunday's talks were successful. But the rail operator said it had already arranged for reduced train services and adjusting to a no-strike situation would take some time. “We can no longer undo the substitute time table,” a spokesman for Deutsche Bahn said, adding traffic was set to be disrupted on Monday. GDL had threatened strikes from early on Monday, escalating a months-long wage dispute with Deutsche Bahn. If the rail strikes were to go ahead, they would coincide with a separate labour dispute at Berlin local transport operator BVG, which has paralysed bus, tram and underground services in the capital since last Wednesday. German rubbish collectors, nursery workers and other public sector employees could also stage new strikes, after talks between the government and service sector trade union Verdi ended on Friday without a wage deal. __
