The RMT has cancelled three rail strikes planned over the next week after a breakthrough in negotiations.
Workers had been due to walk out tomorrow, November 7 and November 9 in an ongoing dispute over pay and conditions.
The union said it would now enter a period of “intensive negotiations” with employers in an attempt to reach a deal.
RMT general secretary Mick Lynch said: “The threat of strike action and our strongly supported industrial campaign has made the rail employers see sense.
“We have always wanted to secure a negotiated settlement and that is what we will continue to push for in this next phase of intensive talks.
“Our priority is our members, and we are working towards securing a deal on job security, a decent pay rise and good working conditions.”
However, Lynch also warned that further walkouts will take place if no agreement with employers can be reached.
He said: “Our re-ballot remains live and if we have to take strike action during the next 6 months to secure a deal, we will.”
Transport secretary Mark Harper welcomed the announcement, but said there would still be “significant disruption” on the rail network.
The potential breakthrough came just two days after Lynch warned that the strikes could continue into next year unless an agreement is reached.
He told a Westminster rally: “We’re not in this for the sake of it.
“We want the companies to make us proposals that will settle the dispute. I know that the companies could do that.
“The secretary of state has got to decide what his stance is and if he unlocks some funding and unlocks some new positions of principle, then there could be a settlement to this dispute very quickly.”