Transportation in Germany has ground to a halt as two of the country’s biggest unions have called for a strike.
The 24-hour stoppage has affected staff at airports, ports, railways, buses and subways.
The unions are demanding higher wages to cope with rising costs of living across the country.
The strike is expected to be the largest in decades and has caused significant disruption.
Commuter and regional trains operated by Deutsche Bahn have been affected, and local transport services are not operating in seven states.
The strike has also caused the cancellation of thousands of flights, including at Munich and Frankfurt airports.
The Verdi union, which represents 2.5 million employees across the public sector, is calling for a 10.5% pay rise, while EVG, which represents 230,000 employees at Deutsche Bahn and other bus companies, is calling for a 12% rise in pay.
The strike is hoped to increase pressure on employers ahead of further pay negotiations this week.
There have been concerns raised that the unions are making unreasonable demands that risk alienating the public, but similar wage increases have been negotiated recently.
