Train W***ers

[Befuddled81]

Yesterday my sister and I had a lovely day out with our six (between us) children. We were both very tired on the way home and when we got on the train it was absolutely jam packed. Four children shared a two seat, we had the toddler in a pram and my sister and I stood, there was also an elderly chap standing, one bloke and two
Women all cramped in next to each other. When I looked through the glass but to the seats behind there was a young couple with their feet up on what I then realised was their rucksacks on top of the two folding seats opposite them. Now I appreciate that I was a little hasty and perhaps should have asked them politely in the first instance, if they would mind moving their bags but the fact that they actually had their feet up made me sooooooo mad . Anyway, I said to them 'don't worry, you two put your feet up whilst we all stand here squashed into this tiny space', the following snarky conversation ensued in which they told me I was being unreasonable as their bags weighed 40kg each and they couldn't fit them on the shelf thingy. Eventually they made one of the seats available and I invited the elderly gentleman to sit which he did. When I told my DH when we got home he said I was unreasonable and that I don't own the train and shouldn't have said anything! AIBU?

I didn't barge in anywhere, the train had been moving for well over ten minutes before I said anything, I didn't even realise there were seats under their bags and feet at first. And I didn't want to sit next to them, I just didn't think they have the right to have seats for their stuff. I wouldn't have sat in the seats until every other person was sat down in the carriage.

I would have really laughed if I'd overheard you saying that OP, I don't think you were unreasonable at all. It would be really good if people were a bit more self aware and they were definately being selfish and they knew it too.

Both you and them being unreasonable here. You can ask politely for someone to move their feet/bag so someone can sit down, but you shouldn't be rude. I get your excuses, but you were still unreasonable. They were also unreasonable not moving voluntarily.

I don't think I am making excuses, I think I acknowledged from the off that I should have approached it politely at first.

Yanbu

To be honest I'm not sure that this selfish couple deserved a polite approach, although it probably would have been more effective.

I don't think they deserved politeness either, although it probably would have got you a quicker result. Selfish buggers. Who behaves like that when there are people standing? Particularly old people.

I've been on trains where it's so packed that people have to sit in the luggage rack (not the overhead ones! The sort that start at waist level). A bloke roared at me because he wanted to put his bag where I was sitting. There was space on the floor. I told him that I wasn't going to stand up so that the bag could sit down.