Group of crabs invade the Newcastle Metro after making a bid for freedom

A passenger was carrying the crabs in a plastic bag when it split open and they made their bid for freedom

The crabs found on the Metro were a long way from their homes (Win McNamee/Getty Images)

Passengers on the Metro underground train in Newcastle had an unusual commute on Thursday - as a large group of crabs escaped from a bag and started scuttling around the carriage.

Footage from the Metro shows a Metro worker unceremoniously kicking around 20 crabs off the train, leaving them to scuttle around on the platform.

According to the Chronicle, Metro workers said a passenger was carrying the crabs in a plastic bag while travelling on the train.

The bag split open, the crabs made their bid for freedom, and the presumably embarrassed passenger left the station without picking them up.

The man who filmed the bizarre scene told student paper The Tab: "It's amazing to see a Metro pull up and see a different class of passenger being removed."

"Maybe they didn't have a ticket. Metro staff dealt with it, albeit a bit roughly."

Cleaners picked the crabs up, and the four that survived have been taken to the Blue Reef aquarium in Tynemouth, presumably to live out the rest of their lives there, rather than ending up as somebody's dinner.

Terry McKeon, from the aquarium, told the Chronicle that if the gang of four manage to survive, they'll be put in the outside display.