Passengers on the Jubilee line of the London Underground were left puzzled when their train unexpectedly stopped at the long-abandoned Charing Cross station branch. The Jubilee line section

of the station has been out of use since 1999, making the incident all the more surprising.

One passenger described the moment when they realized something was amiss: "I noticed that Westminster station looked unusual and as the train slowed, I noticed the roundels said Charing Cross and not Westminster." The train driver later admitted to having no idea what happened, and some passengers were taken aback when one of them even tried to open the doors.

Transport for London (TfL) attributed the mishap to a "miscommunication." According to a TfL spokesperson, the train was supposed to reroute into the sidings to regulate a late service, allowing passengers to disembark at Green Park. However, due to the miscommunication, not all passengers were able to leave the train before it continued into the disused Charing Cross station. The train quickly reversed back to Green Park to allow the remaining passengers to exit safely.

The Charing Cross station, although closed to passengers for nearly 25 years, still sees occasional train movements for regulating services and is used for filming. While the incident caused some disruption, TfL assured passengers that the train movement was routine, safe, and controlled by their signalling system.

Despite the inconvenience, one passenger saw a silver lining, saying, "I'm still blown away at what happened, maybe because I got a free trip to an abandoned Tube station." For those interested, the disused Charing Cross Jubilee line station can be visited during Hidden London tours offered by the London Transport Museum. Photo by Hahifuheho, Wikimedia commons.