Auckland's train services will be disrupted from Monday as train drivers and crew implement an overtime ban.

Members of the Rail and Maritime Transport Union (RMTU) are annoyed at a plan for driver-only trains, saying they aren't safe and have taken industrial action on the issue previously.

The RMTU said it had a positive meeting with both council-controlled Auckland Transport and rail operator Transdev, a French company, on Friday

There is another meeting scheduled for Wednesday.

"If we make progress we can call off the overtime ban, if not our members are also willing to take full-day strikes," says John Kerr, a RMTU organiser.

"Transdev and Auckland Transport aren't budging on driver-only operation, which will severely compromise passenger safety," he says.

Train services on the eastern, southern and western line will be running at a reduced frequency from February 26 to March 16.

Auckland Transport and Transdev say they have developed a temporary timetable to minimise disruption and provide consistent rail services on these lines during the next three weeks.

The strike will see up to 20 train services an hour cancelled until the sixteenth of March.

Auckland Transport chief transport services officer Mark Lambert says services will run every 20 minutes during peak periods on the Southern, Western and Eastern lines, rather than the usual 10 minutes.

"If you travelling during the morning and afternoon rush hours on train services, you should allow for more time."

He says some trains will run with extra carriages, which will allow 900 passengers to travel, in order to shift as many people as possible.

Onehunga and Pukekohe weekday train services and weekend train services across all lines will remain on their usual timetable.

Ferry and bus services will operate as normal.

Auckland Transport says it is proposing to transfer the responsibility for train door opening and closing from train managers to train drivers with specific safety controls, pending safety case approval from independent rail regulator, NZ Transport Agency.

Train managers will be replaced with a larger team of roving transport officers who will be trained to manage anti-social behaviour and have flexibility to move around.

Transdev managing director Michel Ladrak says the changes won't compromise public safety.

"In our model we would employ 70 people more. They can remove people off the train, and they can respond to emergencies when necessary."

Auckland's Mayor Phil Goff hopes a settlement comes sooner rather than later.

"I'd certainly encourage both the union and Auckland to work through the differences and to try and settle those differences in a way that can limit the problems that will be created."

- with content from NZ Newswire