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Passengers traveling from New York City to Washington, D.C., found themselves unexpectedly stranded at the Vienna Metro station Monday night after their bus driver allegedly refused to make the scheduled D.C. stops and ignored instructions from the bus company.

The Jan. 19 BestBus trip was supposed to carry riders from Penn Station to Union Station and Dupont Circle. According to a passenger posting on Bluesky as Musicology Duck, problems began after a driver change at a rest stop.

The passenger wrote shortly before 9 p.m. that riders had realized the bus was heading in the wrong direction. The new driver reportedly insisted they were on the wrong bus, declined to speak with them while driving and traveled at high speed.

Passengers contacted BestBus representatives, who instructed the driver to proceed to Union Station. He allegedly refused, saying he was not paid enough, and repeatedly ended calls with company staff.

As the bus approached the Washington area, the driver reportedly told one rider that he had family waiting at home and did not have time to stop in the District.

At least one passenger called police but asked that officers avoid stopping the bus while it was moving because of concerns about the driver’s erratic behavior.

Shortly before 10 p.m., the driver exited the highway and allowed the passengers to get off at the Vienna Metro station. Videos posted by Musicology Duck appeared to show him making an obscene gesture toward riders as they retrieved their luggage.

“I’m the captain of this ship,” the driver said while closing the luggage compartment in one video.

The driver then left the station. BestBus sent another bus that ultimately transported the passengers to Union Station.

Fairfax County police said officers responded at 10:02 p.m. to the 9500 block of Virginia Center Boulevard following a report of a bus driver behaving erratically. When officers arrived, the person who made the complaint said assistance was no longer necessary because the bus had departed.

BestBus said it launched an internal investigation covering the driver’s conduct, operating procedures and conditions during the trip. The company apologized for the disruption and said every affected passenger received a full refund and a voucher for future travel.

Vienna is normally among the company’s Northern Virginia stops, along with the Franconia-Springfield Metro station and a commuter lot in Manassas.