The Quirky London Underground Station with Platforms in the Wrong Order
Stanmore station’s unusual platform numbering has left many commuters puzzled
Stanmore, London, Jubilee Line, Transport, Commuters
London: Stanmore station is a bit of a head-scratcher on the Underground. It’s got this quirky platform numbering that throws everyone off. Instead of the usual 1, 2, 3, you’ve got 2, 1, 3. Crazy, right?
This odd setup has definitely confused a lot of folks rushing to catch their trains. Stanmore is the northern end of the Jubilee line and opened way back in 1932. It started as part of the Metropolitan line, which was called the Metropolitan Railway back then.
In 1939, it switched to the Bakerloo line and finally became part of the Jubilee line in 1979. The strange platform numbers actually come from its history. It’s a bit of a story!
Oh, and get this: they didn’t even add a third platform until 2004, which was 74 years after the station first opened. They built it to handle more trains, and it opened in July 2011.
When they added the new platform, they had a choice: mess up the order or renumber everything. They decided to keep the quirky numbering, and it’s still the same today, 12 years later. Go figure!