Around 1,000 people greeted the protesters in London

It marks the end of a series of marches which have taken Rail Maritime and Transport union members from Glasgow through 14 cities.

They have been putting pressure on parties in the run-up to the election.

RMT general secretary Bob Crow said the marches had had a "great reception" and given the clear message that "Britain wants a publicly-owned railway".

Public choice

A crowd of around 1,000 people greeted the marchers in Whitehall Place in London on Saturday, a union spokesman said.

Mr Crow said the turnout was "magnificent".

"The message our marchers have had all the way down from Glasgow is that Britain wants a publicly-owned railway, and it is about time that choice was put before the people of Britain," he said.

The rally will end in Camden where speakers Mr Crow, other union leaders, MPs and veteran Labour stalwart Tony Benn will address the crowd.

The protesters in London are also calling for an end to what they call the "disastrous Tube PPP" (public-private partnership deal).

'Better deal'

Mr Crow believes that public ownership of railways would "provide a better deal for travellers".

"There is a huge rail rebate to be had from bringing rail back into the public sector," he added.

"RMT has shown that public ownership can release huge funds to help get projects like Crossrail started, put staff back on our deserted stations, keep rural railways on track and promote a fairer fares policy."

Tony Benn will speak at the rally in Camden

The RMT argues that rail privatisation has failed and that the public subsidy paid to the railway is three times higher than that paid to British Rail.

In its own transport manifesto, the union says it would raise more than �10bn for the railways over the next decade.

It has also called for an immediate windfall tax on the "excess profits" of train rolling stock companies.

The marchers set off from Glasgow on 16 April dressed in bright orange and yellow high-visibility clothing as worn by staff on the railways.

Party policies

When protest action was announced last month, the Department for Transport said bringing the railways back under public control was not affordable.

It said the government's position had been set out in the Future of Transport white paper in July 2004.

In their manifesto, the Liberal Democrats say privatisation "left the railways in a mess".

They say they will have fewer, larger rail franchises with longer contracts.

The Conservatives say they will free "rail and bus companies to invest and innovate".

They say: "The growth in rail travel reflects the fact that the sector has been better able to respond to people's choices since its return to the private sector."