As someone who uses public transit every day to get to and from work there are a number of things aside from the bus running late or the subway breaking down in the tunnel that get on my nerves.
Today was one of those days where some of these things came sharply into focus so here are a few of my transit peeves. Feel free to add.
Loud Cell phone conversations on the bus. So today I'm coming home , why is it that although I'm listening to my discman I can still hear the phone conversation of the lady across the corridor from me in the bus. Why do I have to hear her getting loud and hostile on the phone? I just gine home from work, I tired, I stressed I really don't want to know your problems or get caught up in your drama. Keep that to yourself. I heard talk of them setting things up so that cellphones work in the subway like they do in Hong Kong. Lawd ave mercy I hope that day never come.
I'm afraid to sit next to the black man on the subway. Think I mentioned this b.s before but today it was so blatantly obvious. Women gets in the subway and sits down ahead of me, I go and sit next to her because well it wasn't like there were any fully empty seats. Woman stays for a few minutes looking a bit worried then she gets up almost immediately and moves. Yea f you too ya blasted idiot!
Rowdy kids. They usually come in bunches, I guess its a peer pressure trying to be cool thing. However its not really cool to have to listen to loud obnoxious little brats with their silly asinine little jokes and behavior when you are just trying to abide the damn train ride. Now before you think I'm saying they are all bad that is simply not the case. In quite a few cases there are kids who you would probably look at on first glance and think oh they are going to be bad behaved or they unmannerly or whatever but it turns out those kids are actually rather mannerly if you have any interaction with them.
Poor personal hygiene. Nothing worse than being in the subway with a some of those dudes who like they were never informed about the uses of water. Lawd ave mercy. Them fellas will clear ya sinuses faster than vicks, benalyn, robatussin, any of them sort of medications.
People who put their bags in seats and then act like you are asking them to give you a kidney when you ask them to move it so you can sit down.
People standing who refuse to move to the back of the bus hence leaving you or some poor chap stranded at the bus stop because the driver wont fill the bus anymore. Meanwhile about half the bus empty. This happens alot in the new buses where folk wont go stand in the back.
Unnecessary conversations. There are just certain conversations that one shouldn't have in public in my opinion. Some people just don't understand this on the bus or train. They will have some of the most explicit, disturbing conversations within your ear range. And no its not that you are eavesdropping but they usually don't do it that quietly and you know there are certain words that if you aren't even listening and you hear them your ears will suddenly perk up and be like wait wha dem talkin bout. I wont mention which words but y'all may get the idea.
Anyway you may say I'm bitching so don't take public transit. Well my tax dollar goes into their service so I feel it is my right to take it if I choose. Plus its just a microcosm of our society in a way and is pretty interesting. Anyway I'm just stating what goes on. Let me know what annoys you on the bus or train.
15 comments:
jdid you beat me to it. when i was working days i would often want to come home and blog about the exact same thing. the manners (or lack thereof) of transit riders is often atrocious.
good post.
First up I hate the bus and avoid it as much as I can.But,it would have to be the way they pack people almost as if they are sardines.Then there is some deafening music that some drivers refuse to lower
JDid, I haven't taken public transport for a while locally. Last time was when I was back in jolly ole England's 'tube'. Nuff of what you said applied.
Regarding cell phones, people just simply have no class and have allowed them to rule their lives.
Maybe you could work towards purchasing some wheels rude yute....but even that comes with its share of worries too.
Enjoy your day. Dr. D.
Amen, brother.
My peeve is the nasty ass people who sneeze/cough/wipe their phlegmy noses and then hold on to the posts on the bus, leaving them wet and slimy.
Lawd, I prefer fall down than touch the poles on public transit.
as a fellow rider, i experience all the same things. and it's just as bad here, even though it's a much smaller city. i think my biggest peeve are the rowdy, LOUD kids with the uneccessary language. everything is 'F' this and 'F' that. and then some of the conversations i hear from kids as young as 15 talking about sex and who they giving it too - makes my skin crawl. and boys, that have the nerve to call rudely to young girls on the bus. when my nerve is up - i call them on it. that's what makes me dislike transit - otherwise, it's a great way to travel.
and, i think part of the problem is us. us that complain to others about it - but don't confront the people while it's happening. i'm trying to get my nerve up more often to do that. if we don't speak up, people won't learn that it's rude and will continue to do it, because we tolerate it.
@marlo girl - atrocious doesnt begin to cover it sometimes
@sunshine - upbringing? boy dat gone long time ago. we being raised by wolves now
@Big N - ya lucky star
@abeni - oh gosh the music in the minibuses back home is something else and the way they drive. boy i duz be real frighten fa my life
@nikki - agreed
@Dr - even wid a car i wud still have to take bus to work cause i dont get no free parking an i think is bout a good 15 dollars or so a day to park where i am. i wud gotta look for a job to pay fa parking
@urban sis - yea boy i faget about that one. dat one duz scare me alot
@purfiktgurl - yes the language of these youths outta control. ya know you mek a good pont about speaking to them but it aint like where i grow up or when i grow up because these youts duz cuss ya back, them will threaten ya an i frighten fa dem. i know dat is sad but i know their parents gine back dem up too so i really doan know what ta do.
Actually what gets me really upset is when people are swearing and there are little kids present. its just sets a bad bad example
what! don't let me become a mother taking a bus with my younguns and have youth be swearing and cursing within my kids earshot - i know i would go off! i'm a real easy going person, but certain things, i will show my face! lol!
Well I haven't taken public transport in about 15 years but things that bothered me was the service itself...overcrowded loud music, body odours, bad driving, pick pockets...you name it we had it
Dats plenty to park JDid! :-0 Dr. D.
Like Scratchie and Dr. D, haven't been on a bus in awhile. I have posted on my memories of riding the bus more than once still, it wasn't all bad, though there were one or two things that would annoy. Abeni/Jdid, I used to like the loud music when I rode the bus, but then I was a lot younger then...
@purfiktgurl - i wasnt even talking about youth i mean big adults who should know better
@scratchie - luckily i aint encounter no pickpockets yet
@Dr D - yep thats why lots of folks with cars still ride the bus
@mad bull - yea I used to like the music too lol
yea starfoxx, i know what ya mean about the big people
man sum fellas duz tek up 2 seats on the train an got ya squeeze
yea i do the same with my bag too but i move it when the place starts filling up
Everything that you mentioned is reason why I don't miss public transit. I could never get over dem people dat doan understand de concept of "walk left, stand right" (or wuhever it is) and dem ones dat never move out the way when yuh trying to get off the bus or subway. I come real close to pushing down a few of them back in the day.
As fuh dem school women and men, I used to get to work late just so I could miss them.
I ride the TTC everyday, and I've missed busses because of people who don't understand 'walk left stand right'. Standing left should be a bannable offense. If you have a metropass, and you are standing left, your card should be cut up right then and there.
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