London faces two days of travel chaos after the breakdown of last-minute talks aimed at halting the capital's first widespread Underground strike for nearly two years. Negotiations between London Underground management and the Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union broke down shortly before the 6.59pm deadline for the start of the 48-hour strike. The action - over pay and jobs - will halt a network that carries more than 3m passengers a day. Transport for London, the London mayor's transport organisation, is preparing a series of special measures for the strike days , including extra buses and river services, the wider acceptance of electronic travel cards and extra cycle-parking spaces. But business organisations said they still expected severe travel problems, and many businesses were thought likely to cancel meetings and conferences in response. John Cridland, deputy director-general of the CBI employers' body, said the strike would cause great inconvenience and was damaging for business and London's reputation.