I knew something was up when the wrong Metropolitan came in. You see, unlike the other lines on the Underground, Metropolitan trains run to a timetable and you know whether they are on time if you can recognise the header code displayed on the front of the train. Today, at Ruislip Manor in the morning, instead of my normal 433, the train was 466. And when they announced that the Jubilee was closed and trains on the Met were blocking back due to overcrowding, my fears were confirmed.
When we reached Baker Street, some 15 minutes late, both the southbound and northbound platforms were crowded, something I have never seen before in the morning. The Jubilee was still out (power failure) and they had closed access to the Bakerloo to prevent overcrowding on the platforms, so the Met platforms were jammed instead. Normally I take the Bakerloo but I did not try to join the mob but stayed on until Euston Square, got out and walked over to Warren St and continued my journey by the Northern (often derided but I have no complaints about it today).
It is always a little disorientating when you take a different route but end up at the same destination as usual. And it can hit you in the pocket - having gone out of the system and then gone back in, I may perhaps be charged for two separate journeys - how intelligent the ticketing process is will only be known when I look at the total charge for today.
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