Voyage Of The Damned

[emmie]

do you think travelling by public transport brings out the worse in people, that is of course if you do it. Having witnessed yet another to and fro on the bus, two women who almost came to blows over a pram parking space, i must remember to take the headphones next time, the effing and blinding would have made a sailor blush.

[daisya]

Yes I do in some cases Em but then at times people can be very kind if you aren't fully fit and have a stick to walk with. Unfortunately there seems to be "rage" in a lot of people for whatever reason though, not as much tolerance as there used to be IMO.

[emmie]

i have seen this sort of behaviour so often, especially when women can't get their prams in the space, forgetting they are for wheelchair users. Two women had a stand up fight over who got out the doors first, it was surreal.

[ummmm]

Maybe it has something to do with where they are coming from and where they are going to that stresses people out.

I don't use public transport much but I've never seen a fight on a bus.

[Connemmara]

Neither have I - very good here on the buses - except for the bus drivers - mostly horrible.

[sandyRoe]

There's a bus stop in front of the library in Belfast must rank as one of the most dangerous anywhere. Yesterday a man, said to have been smoking dope, was sentenced to 1 year in prison for manslaughter after he was convicted of pushing a pensioner who fell and later died from head injuries. At the same stop a man was convicted of biting a chunk out of a womans face after a row while they waited for the bus.
No wonder I take taxis.

[AlwaysConfused]

What amazes me is when people push, shove and become quite aggressive to get a seat - only to get off at the next stop! I detest public transport. I do not drive, but I will not take a bus, train etc if I can do the journey on foot in under an hour.

[SlackAlice]

As an ex London Bus Driver, I can sympathise with you. Some people take it to extremes, assuming it's a god given right to ram their pushchair into the space. Some of them do not have children in them!

The ruckus really starts when you refuse all pushchairs, because of insufficient space.

[tiggerblue10]

There was a guy in the bus the other day shouting racist stuff. Couldn't wait to get off. Loads of things have happened over the years but I've managed to block them from my mind. One time I sat on a seat which was wet. I assumed someone had put their wet umbrella on it and I sincerely hope it was not the other thing that I thought it could have been!

If I could drive to work I would but a couple of years ago they made our car park at work only for disabled, blue badge holders and those with medical issues that are eligible for parking. The only other option is £8 per day in the multi-story across the road!

[FredPuli43]

Ah, never it happened in my father's day. He could remember the frequent sight of women in the East End fighting in the street. Oh, maybe it did.

[jno]

guess they couldn't afford a bus ticket, FredPuli

[society]

Saw this headline in the Latest Post box and thought it was a film being talked about.

I hate using public transportation. I am so fortunate, I walk to work.

[FredPuli43]

LOL @ jno. In more recent times, my then wife saw pensioners in London on the 'pensioners' bus', when their passes operated outside rush hour, when two old girls tried to come to blows and were stopped by an equally old London man. Old habits die hard !

[Spoonboy]

It makes one wonder how that woman would have coped if it was a wheelchair instead!!

[237SJ]

I tend to use the bus for nights out (cheaper than taxis). The night time users must be all slightly sozzled or something because I never see any trouble - just chilled out people. The only hastle I have seen during the day is from the pushchair brigade that think they have the right to barge everyone else out of the wheelchair section of the bus (or Lower Saloon as TFL call it)

[Eve]

I use it a lot and have witnessed some very nasty assaults and abuse from people taking it out on the bus physically when they don't get their own way (common one is giving it a good kicking when the driver won't open the doors to let them on) to out right fights, one with metal bars and lots of blood involved and another ended up with two of them fighting off the bus and falling back through a glass shop door.

Getting on is a bit of a freeforall round here. I find it differs how kind people are when it comes to me getting a seat when I get on with my stick, have had to cling on for dear life a few times trying to stand when I've had to get somewhere by a certain time.

I tend to try and travel outside of rush hour whenever possible. The main pain is if I have to go to the Doctors or hospital after work as it's two buses to work, two to the doctors/hospital then because if I get the bus from near there, there is next to no chance in getting on a bus with a seat anytime soon or anyone letting me have a seat I usually end up getting a bus back into town then one back home (probably adding an hour on to my journey if round rush hour).

[emmie]

not just me then, i wonder at peoples behaviour, why they don't just get on and get off without any fuss, some of the pram ladies seem to have little or no courtesy, and the poor wheelchair users are usually the last to be able to access the space reserved for them. I can't use shanksies pony much, so bus it is. must find the headphones.

[janbee]

I rarely use the bus, even although I have a free bus pass. I prefer to walk as much as possible. On the rare occasions I do take a bus, there are always problems with those damned gigantic buggies. They take up the space of a million people and it ALWAYS causes friction. I would ban them from being used on public transport unless they could be folded up prior to being taken on board.

[Canary42]

I frequently use buses but have never witnessed such behaviour as describe in this thread. Perhaps because I travel off-peak.

[emmie]

i travel at any point in the day, makes no odds. The 4 x 4's that someone called them take up so much space, many get stuck down the aisles, which causes the bus drivers to get cross. Three prams on the bus yesterday, which was dangerous as no one could get on or off, yes i would walk more, but that's proving to be difficult.