A strike which would have caused travel chaos across the county over the weekend has been called off.

The Rail Maritime and Transport union said it had reached a deal with Network Rail, averting a 24-hour walk-out from noon tomorrow and a 48-hour stoppage next week.

Commuters were warned to stay at home on Friday or risk huge delays. Hundreds of Sussex services would have been cancelled, causing problems for tens of thousands of people in the region.

The RMT executive and Network Rail yesterday reached a deal that should avoid strike action, subject to a vote by union members. The strike was planned by 5,000 signallers unhappy that they had been offered a two-year pay deal while 15,000 maintenance staff were offered a one-year deal with renegotiations next year.

Now the RMT executive has agreed to accept the offer, if a 35-hour working week can be implemented from next month.

Another, 48-hour strike which had been planned for next weekend, starting at noon on Thursday, July 27, has also been called off. The RMT will recommend the pay deal to its members in a referendum that will close on July 28.

John Armitt, Network Rail's chief executive, said: "This is good news for passengers and freight customers, who are no longer facing the disruption of a strike. This is also good news for our people, who could soon have their new pay deal implemented."

Bob Crow, RMT general secretary, said: "While there is no doubt that negotiations on our claim have been protracted, it is worth remembering how far we have persuaded the company to move."