# My subway rants! **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [November 12, 2013, 5:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-subway-rants/673703 "2013-11-12T05:49:37Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![chizzuk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e36b37/32.png) [@chizzuk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chizzuk)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2013, 3:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-subway-rants/673703/81 "2013-11-13T03:50:46Z")
> [@Zago](#): > > I’m amazed that no one has mentioned my two pet peeves: > > 1. blocking the doors so passengers can’t get on or off the train quickly because the jerks are standing in the doorway > > 2. passengers on the platform will rush onto the train before letting passengers disembark Oh hell yes to #1. Don’t know where you’re going? The correct answer is “eight feet diagonally to your right,” where you can get the hell out of everybody else’s way and THEN stop to figure out such critical tourist questions such as whether the Metro stop called “Smithsonian” contains the Smithsonian museums. Drives me nuts! #2, I honestly don’t notice so often here: assuming you’re near the doors when the train stops and aren’t taking your sweet time moseying out of your window seat in the center of the car while the doors are already open, 95% of the time people here will let you out before getting on. My other pet Metro peeves: 1. As mentioned earlier, stand on the RIGHT, walk on the LEFT of the escalator. It’s often tourists. We know you are in awe to be standing on an escalator in a real live subway system, but some of us do not want to ogle the station we’ve been through 400 times and would prefer to get where we’re going. Particularly on the weekends, where being held up by an escalump and missing a train can cost you 10-15 minutes of additional waiting. 2. People who don’t read signs and then stand there forever in front of a farecard machine that says “No Bills” wondering why it won’t take their cash, or who go through the SmarTrip only lane with a paper farecard. 3. People who think they are oh-so-special and race to cram into a train car as the door is closing, getting their arm/leg/bag stuck and often screwing up the doors so they won’t close. When this happens, the entire train has to be offloaded and creates a huge messy ripple effect. 4. People who scream into their cell phones or play music so loudly the whole car can hear it even though they have headphones on. 5. People who take the free Metro Express papers at the entrance to the stations and then apparently deconstruct them methodically on the ride so every single page of the paper is individually strewn over a different area of the seat and floor. Then they leave it there. ---
**Author:** ![PaulParkhead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ea924/32.png) [@PaulParkhead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PaulParkhead)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2013, 3:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-subway-rants/673703/82 "2013-11-13T03:57:59Z")
> [@curlcoat](#): > > Like I am the only one in this thread to have complained about rude parents and SUV strollers? Nice try on finding an excuse for being inconsiderate. It’s the Pit! Plenty of people have complained about all sorts of crap. Plenty of people have complained about _your_ crap. I know, because I read. Sometimes. But I need to wonder why folks assume that public transit facilities are solely for the benefit of those without children. You know the sort of thing: “I’m going to work! You people with children must get out of my way! I’m doing _important stuff_, while all you’re doing is taking care of kids.” ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2013, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-subway-rants/673703/83 "2013-11-13T04:10:15Z")
> [@PaulParkhead](#): > > But I need to wonder why folks assume that public transit facilities are solely for the benefit of those without children. You know the sort of thing: “I’m going to work! You people with children must get out of my way! I’m doing _important stuff_, while all you’re doing is taking care of kids.” I’m non-discriminatory there. I also complain about work people carrying fuckloads of stuff with them (especially those with wheeled bags that love to swerve back and forth - or stop suddenly - and trip people with their trailing bag), or people taking the L to the airport who have enough luggage to supply a large caravan of travelers, and pile their bags all over the aisle so people have to attempt a mountain-climbing expedition to get past. ---
**Author:** ![Inner\_Stickler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inner_stickler/32/318_2.png) [@Inner\_Stickler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inner_Stickler)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2013, 4:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-subway-rants/673703/84 "2013-11-13T04:15:49Z")
_rips one right in TashaKitty’s face_ People fart. People eat food. The time for getting over it is now. _places Mickey D’s food in front of large fan_ ---
**Author:** ![j666](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de0a6/32.png) [@j666](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/j666)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2013, 4:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-subway-rants/673703/85 "2013-11-13T04:26:15Z")
Has anyone else mentioned young men who spread their knees wide enough to block three seats? (Has anyone ever given into the temptation to glance at their … belt-buckle, and snicker?) > [@PaulParkhead](#): > > But I need to wonder why folks assume that public transit facilities are solely for the benefit of those without children. They don’t. But they do assume public facilities require consideration for, you know, the public, and not just solely for those with children. There are strollers better suited for public transportation that those ones that cost more than my first car. ---
**Author:** ![TashaKitty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d26b3c/32.png) [@TashaKitty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TashaKitty)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2013, 4:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-subway-rants/673703/86 "2013-11-13T04:37:13Z")
> [@Zago](#): > > 1. passengers on the platform will rush onto the train before letting passengers disembark Oh yeah, I forgot about that one. Harvard station is notoriously bad for this. > [@Zago](#): > > I use the MBTA and I agree with most of the OP’s points. And yes, at above ground stops, if you’re paying in cash you should be the last person to board. You’re holding everyone up - why is it so hard to understand? Thank you! ---
**Author:** ![Zago](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/ecccb3/32.png) [@Zago](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zago)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2013, 4:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-subway-rants/673703/87 "2013-11-13T04:38:06Z")
Those SUV strollers have no place on the subway. Smaller strollers are annoying but hey, I can handle being annoyed. I’m sort of impressed with the ability of the person with the stroller to remain composed while everyone is shooting him/her daggers though. ---
**Author:** ![TashaKitty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d26b3c/32.png) [@TashaKitty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TashaKitty)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2013, 4:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-subway-rants/673703/88 "2013-11-13T04:40:19Z")
> [@Ruken](#): > > Allowing people to pay cash \*\*on \*\*the subway is, indeed, stupid. Is that actually how things work in Boston? Only on the green line, which runs both below and above ground. In the below ground stations people pay at the turnstiles just like on the other lines, but at the above ground stops (especially on the B and E lines, which are literally in the meridians of busy streets, and the final stops on the E, which literally let you out on the street and into traffic) it’s not possible to add turnstiles. ---
**Author:** ![TashaKitty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d26b3c/32.png) [@TashaKitty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TashaKitty)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2013, 4:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-subway-rants/673703/89 "2013-11-13T04:53:27Z")
> [@PaulParkhead](#): > > “I’m going to work! You people with children must get out of my way! I’m doing _important stuff_, while all you’re doing is taking care of kids.” Let’s not forget here that people HAVE to work for a living, lest they wind up homeless and on the streets, whereas, despite the GOP’s best attempts, nobody is forcing people to have kids. Oh, and another thing that grinds my gears: when I get off a 12-hour shift and my feet ache so badly that I’m limping because I’ve been on them all day, and all I want is a seat on the T, but somebody’s five-year-old (who rides for free and is coming home from a fun-filled day at the aquarium or beach or something) takes the last seat. Parents need to have some consideration for their fellow PAYING customers and put the damn kid on their lap if there aren’t enough seats for everybody to sit down. ---
**Author:** ![TashaKitty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d26b3c/32.png) [@TashaKitty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TashaKitty)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2013, 4:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-subway-rants/673703/90 "2013-11-13T04:54:51Z")
> [@j666](#): > > Has anyone else mentioned young men who spread their knees wide enough to block three seats? In my OP I mentioned men with “wide stances”. ---
**Author:** ![Ruken](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f475e1/32.png) [@Ruken](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ruken)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2013, 11:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-subway-rants/673703/91 "2013-11-13T11:33:01Z")
> [@Zago](#): > > In Boston it’s only on above ground stops on the Green Line (oldest ‘subway’ in America). Because the stops are above ground, and are literally on street corners, the MBTA has decided to accept cash as buying a ticket isn’t always convenient. Building full blown stations with turnstiles just isn’t practical in these areas. Thank God this is only on the Green Line and not until you get out of Boston proper. > [@TashaKitty](#): > > Only on the green line, which runs both below and above ground. In the below ground stations people pay at the turnstiles just like on the other lines, but at the above ground stops (especially on the B and E lines, which are literally in the meridians of busy streets, and the final stops on the E, which literally let you out on the street and into traffic) it’s not possible to add turnstiles. That does make things tricky. And now that you all mention it, I think I’ve taken that line when visiting friends in Boston. I drove to some outer station where I could park. IIRC, you could put money into the turnstyle. The solution there is to not accept money at turnstyles either. Fill your card up ahead of time or walk. That does require having enough accessible card and fare vending machines. ---
**Author:** ![vontsira](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/51bf81/32.png) [@vontsira](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vontsira)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2013, 11:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-subway-rants/673703/92 "2013-11-13T11:39:24Z")
> [@Cat\_Whisperer](#): > > This is another thing I’ve learned on the Dope - US Americans are (by-and-large) quite uptight about farting (I was going to say “anal” about it, but decided that fruit was hanging too low). You have to go into another room to fart, you can’t fart around other people, you can’t fart anywhere in public - I’d explode if I lived in the US! I – British citizen and resident – suspect that in the US, I’d be in the same position. Some years ago, I spent an (ill-advised) few months in a Christian community of a particular kind (in the UK). The “head man” there was from California. He made a terrifically big deal about the impropriety of farting around other people, or in public; yet he happily and frequently spat, all over the place – on the pavement, on the ground… He was in many ways a very strange fellow. Re the above, though, it would seem that he was on the same page as very many of his compatriots, as regards farting (but, I trust, not as regards spitting). ---
**Author:** ![DragonAsh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/db5fbb/32.png) [@DragonAsh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DragonAsh)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2013, 12:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-subway-rants/673703/93 "2013-11-13T12:55:31Z")
> [@Ferret\_Herder](#): > > (They fit on your lap, too, unlike behemoth strollers If there were seats to sit down in it’s obviously not crowded is it. > [@TashaKitty](#): > > somebody’s five-year-old (who rides for free and is coming home from a fun-filled day at the aquarium or beach or something) takes the last seat. Parents need to have some consideration for their fellow PAYING customers and put the damn kid on their lap if there aren’t enough seats for everybody to sit down. Having seen little kids bowled over, run over, whacked with backpacks or otherwise hammered from all sides by the ‘paying adults’ :rolleyes: too busy staring at their blackberry or iPhone or iPad to notice kids around them, if there’s a seat available in front of me, my kids are going in it unless someone very near by is very obviously pregnant or very obviously disabled. My feet hurt too dickwad, suck it up. > [@curlcoat](#): > > It appears that women use them so that they have someplace to put their coffee, purses, purchases, coats and kitchen sinks. People who use them in crowded situations are just rude. > > \ > It’s called having consideration. If you are going to have so much stuff that it _requires_ the use of a four wheel vehicle that is four or more feet wide and tall, you should go the next step and use a car, not public transportation. Then you can use an umbrella stroller for the baby. Ah, so only the childless should use public transportation. I see. Seriously, there isn’t an icon in existence that would properly show how far I’m rolling my eyes into the back of my head. Go take a flying fuck you obnoxious, spoiled, self-absorbed prick. ---
**Author:** ![Ruken](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f475e1/32.png) [@Ruken](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ruken)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2013, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-subway-rants/673703/94 "2013-11-13T13:51:35Z")
I admit that I have been that asshole with the gigantic suitcase during DC rush hour. I travel a lot, and sometimes I’m gone long enough that I can’t get by with just carryon luggage. The clients don’t want me stinky. That said, I give priority to the people who are maximizing the economic multiplier that is public transportation; that is, those people traveling light to and from work. I can wait for the next train that isn’t sardined. I can wait for the escalator to clear so that I’m not blocking one lane (most people walk left AND walk right on the shorter ones.) And I do. And it seems like most other people do too. Good thing, too, since I don’t think there’s any way for WMATA to increase capacity. The stations are only so long, and I don’t think they can space trains closer. On an entirely different topic, it’s interesting how people queue for doors. Assuming some heavy-but-not-packed crowd waiting to get on the train, we all (mostly) know to let people clear the train before trying to board. The door is already a choke point, but exiting passengers can get moving once they’re through, assuming folks on the platform get out of the way and line up along the side of the train. E.g.: (= train, || door, \* people) ```auto ******** ====||==== ``` The opposite extreme is a long, slow, tunnel, that takes longer for people to pass through. It doesn’t usually happen, but some people are special: ```auto * * * * * * ====||==== ``` Of course, if you try to line up along side the train, other people will want to get closer to the door rather than in line behind you. So what usually happens is something like this: ```auto * * **** ****** ====||==== ``` Similarly, the entryways to escalators end up forming giant fans of people trying to get on. I wonder if this is a universal phenomenon. My above examples are still preferable to tourist-style ;): ```auto ** **** ====||==== ``` ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2013, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-subway-rants/673703/95 "2013-11-13T15:16:02Z")
> [@Cat\_Whisperer](#): > > This is another thing I’ve learned on the Dope - US Americans are (by-and-large) quite uptight about farting (I was going to say “anal” about it, but decided that fruit was hanging too low). You have to go into another room to fart, you can’t fart around other people, you can’t fart anywhere in public - I’d explode if I lived in the US! That’s because in America everybody has fart radar, so if you happen to make the tiniest and cutest of poots in a deserted aisle in a store somebody IMMEDIATELY has to run up and stand right next to you. It’s a national curse. ---
**Author:** ![Jesse\_Pinkman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/a183cd/32.png) [@Jesse\_Pinkman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jesse_Pinkman)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2013, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-subway-rants/673703/96 "2013-11-13T15:51:09Z")
> [@Motorgirl](#): > > 20 years, man. Any day now I will become the crazy lady on the T. I salute you. ---
**Author:** ![muldoonthief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muldoonthief/32/3188_2.png) [@muldoonthief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/muldoonthief)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2013, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-subway-rants/673703/97 "2013-11-13T16:08:31Z")
> [@TashaKitty](#): > > Let’s not forget here that people HAVE to work for a living, lest they wind up homeless and on the streets, whereas, despite the GOP’s best attempts, nobody is forcing people to have kids. OK, now you’re just a fucking nutjob. Who do you think is going to keep the planet running when you’re retired? Who is going to clean your shit-filled diaper in the home when your sphincter finally gives out after holding in all those farts for decades? The bearing and raising of children is of extreme importance to a functioning society. It could be argued it’s the entire reason civilization exists. Don’t treat it as some frivolous unnecessary luxury that only exists to annoy you. ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2013, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-subway-rants/673703/98 "2013-11-13T16:14:56Z")
> [@DragonAsh](#): > > If there were seats to sit down in it’s obviously not crowded is it. Huh? There are degrees of crowded and some involve seats being open. Megabus-size strollers, huge suitcases, etc., add to the congestion by clogging the aisles with terrible efficiency. ---
**Author:** ![OurLordPeace](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/e8c25b/32.png) [@OurLordPeace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OurLordPeace)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2013, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-subway-rants/673703/99 "2013-11-13T17:40:24Z")
> [@muldoonthief](#): > > OK, now you’re just a fucking nutjob. Who do you think is going to keep the planet running when you’re retired? Who is going to clean your shit-filled diaper in the home when your sphincter finally gives out after holding in all those farts for decades? The bearing and raising of children is of extreme importance to a functioning society. It could be argued it’s the entire reason civilization exists. Don’t treat it as some frivolous unnecessary luxury that only exists to annoy you. I’m not TashaKitty, but your arguments are specious. They sound like the kind of “breeder bingoes/bingos” directed at those of us who don’t want children. ---
**Author:** ![Clothahump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/51bf81/32.png) [@Clothahump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Clothahump)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2013, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-subway-rants/673703/100 "2013-11-13T17:48:59Z")
My never-ending rant about Houston Metro, where the pinheads that run it think that 1. Houston is really suitable for a toy train to carry people around, and 2. They built the goddam thing at street level, instead of building a monorail. The train hits cars, pedestrians, bikers…hell, it will run over [anything and everything.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OwcYcedLxZc) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-subway-rants/673703.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-subway-rants/673703.md?page=6)