# The Laws of Public Transport **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [August 27, 2003, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-laws-of-public-transport/198061 "2003-08-27T20:39:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Bravo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_bravo/32/493_2.png) [@Johnny\_Bravo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Bravo)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2003, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-laws-of-public-transport/198061/1 "2003-08-27T20:39:10Z")
1. Should you get to the bus stop early, the bus will come late. 2. Should you be only one minute late to the bus stop, the bus will either be long gone, or trundling merrily down the street without you. 3. If you run to the bus stop because you’re late, you will just barely miss the bus. If you think you’re _way_ too late and walk, you will just barely miss the bus (it will also be running late). 4. If you have your bicycle with you, the bike rack will be full. 5. If the bus is mostly full and you graciously let that pretty young lady on the bus, the next bus will be at least 20 minutes late. ---
**Author:** ![gotpasswords](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c57346/32.png) [@gotpasswords](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gotpasswords)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2003, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-laws-of-public-transport/198061/2 "2003-08-27T20:55:18Z")
Why would you wait for the next bus if this one’s only mostly full? Around here, a bus isn’t full until people are sitting in strangers’ laps, standing on the rear stairs and packed in so tight that the shape of a zipper pull from someone’s backpack is embossed in your face. ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2003, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-laws-of-public-transport/198061/3 "2003-08-27T21:38:13Z")
Oh, you rode the Yonge bus during the blackout, too, eh? 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Flutterby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Flutterby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flutterby)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2003, 9:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-laws-of-public-transport/198061/4 "2003-08-27T21:42:37Z")
Because if they allow too many people on the bus then the drivers can be held responsible if there is an accident and they have a ton of people flying everywhere. Plus it’s bad for the buses… when I went to school I’d be on this bus that was so packed (despite there being busses that went directly to these schools following the same routes as the regular busses up to a point) that the bus would go up on it’s springs at this one stop near the school. I got off a couple of stops later and I could feel the bus rising. It was creepy. ---
**Author:** ![NinjaChick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/71c47a/32.png) [@NinjaChick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NinjaChick)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2003, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-laws-of-public-transport/198061/5 "2003-08-27T21:44:18Z")
Mind if I add? \*The one time you have a pre-arranged time to be picked up at the train station, the inaccurately-named “speedline” will extend your usual 26-minute ride into a 50-minute ride. \*Whatever train car you get in will end up being the most crowded. \*If you need to take the bus home from the train station and time your train ride thusly, one of the two following scenarios is inevitable: The bus will be on time and your train will be late, forcing you to wait 45 minutes for the next bus, or the train will be early, and the bus will be 30 minutes latte. \*If there are many people by the ticket machine, the change machine will happily accept your fiver and give you $5.00 in nickels. This means you need to insert 86 coins into the ticket machine for a round-trip pass. Once you finally get your ticket, a train will have come and gone. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Bravo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_bravo/32/493_2.png) [@Johnny\_Bravo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Bravo)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2003, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-laws-of-public-transport/198061/6 "2003-08-27T21:49:46Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by gotpasswords \* > \*\*Why would you wait for the next bus if this one’s only mostly full? Around here, a bus isn’t full until people are sitting in strangers’ laps, standing on the rear stairs and packed in so tight that the shape of a zipper pull from someone’s backpack is embossed in your face. \*\* That’s exactly what I mean by “mostly full.” The scenario implies that there’s just enough space for one more person (probably underneath the driver’s seat). ---
**Author:** ![NinjaChick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/71c47a/32.png) [@NinjaChick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NinjaChick)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2003, 9:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-laws-of-public-transport/198061/7 "2003-08-27T21:53:08Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by NinjaChick \* > \*\*\*If you need to take the bus home from the train station and time your train ride thusly, one of the two following scenarios is inevitable: The bus will be on time and your train will be late, forcing you to wait 45 minutes for the next bus, or the train will be early, and the bus will be 30 minutes \*latte. \*\*\* Er…even more likely, the bus will be 30 minutes _late_. Latte would be good, though.