Should someone who's been waiting longer than you at the bus stop always get on first?

[Letthebodieshitthefloor]

The bus I take is essentially a coach, always plenty of seats even at busy hours.

This morning I approached the bus stop, a woman was already there, and I saw her glaring at me because I was standing in the bus stop rather than at the side.

She then let another woman on first who'd perhaps been there longer than she had, then got herself in front of me and looked at me making sure I wouldn't get on before she did.

It's all a bit petty really, the bus was almost empty, it's not going to go without you.

If there were a pregnant/vulnerable/elderly passenger getting on and I could see there weren't many seats left then I'd let them on first.

@liveforsummer

I've had a quick google and can't easily find numbers for Edinbugh bus passengers, but I can find there are 70 routes and 700 buses, so it's nothing like the scale of London.

It's got more routes and busses because it's a shot load bigger and has more space to cover. A similar number of people are waiting and busses are stopping and individual stops

Really? You believe that do you?

I suggest you spend a bit more time in Central London at rush hour!

Sure, central Edinburgh is very busy and has more than its fair share of congestion. But the millions of daily commuters in London are especially concentrated in central London, not nicely spread out over the entire area.

Central London at rush hour is insanely busy; the buses come more frequently - and serve more people - than those in the centre of Edinburgh do.

I love Edinburgh, I'm not bashing it! Just being realistic about the differences.

@Crabwoman

I live in Merseyside and I have noticed that while there is often no formal queue there appears to be in instinctive understanding of who was there first and last. It's a sight to behold.

Here as well, at least for the ones waiting longest. No formal queue but an awareness of who there before you.

I'm in n London so there can be zillions of people waiting!

Those who have things that mean want to get seat etc hang around stop/ shelter and have English standard of each other and who first etc.

Those who less fussed (generally students/ young people) further back and often in groups.

Pretty much all the time, the near stop people- elderly, parent with kids, dodgy mobility etc go first and then it's just whoever as could be like 100 and not all will get on bus.

@nonevernotever

Here in Edinburgh if you have a busy bus stop with a lot of different buses stopping, it's still regarded as correct to ask the people in front of you before pushing in. "Are you getting the 26?" If the answer is yes you step back and follow them on, if the answer is no then you can step past them with impunity. Very civilised! Until the festival when it becomes mayhem. But the offenders then can't all be from South London...

The Edinburgh residents I now tend to hibernate during the invasion of the Festival, they were so much happier when it couldn't be held in all its gory!

@NoSquirrels

British bus etiquette, innit. Surprised you don’t know!

Surely British bus etiquette involves the bus waiting for five minutes while you all go "you first", "no, after you, I insist..."

The company I worked for pre COVID use to run a bus in to the town centre a few times a week at lunch. There was a particular order you had to file off the bus. You could always tell the newbies as they would push off the bus at the end and not form an orderly queue to disembark.

When young blokes/ school girls or boys. Often unthinking not deliberate. Start towards bus door when casual queue of those who need seat etc.

Someone will stride forward pointedly, go right up door. Stand in front. When opens gesture the ones been waiting hours, the ones who know queue position and have waited in the desperate for a seat group. Let them all in first.

This is vv common.

I have done it squillions of times.

No need for glaring, never had anyone else do anything but wait. No evils or anything.

Everyone knows it's right thing, distracted young uns not pushing in on purpose.

THIS is the law in my neck of woods. And it's imo pretty damn good :)

@3scape

(and it's funnier when your friend is a savage cos it's their name)

God that reminds me of years ago when I was teaching, trying to move a slow moving group of children along and saying to one Come on, don't stand there like a lemon, then remembering her name was indeed Lemmon.

@JesusMaryAndJosephAndTheWeeDon

Are you Italian? Getting on a bus in Amalfi was worse than covent garden tube station at rush hour.

The bus arrives and everyone launches at the door like a large and unrefereed rugby scrum irrespective of age/disability/time waiting.

We're British, we queue, I think it is part of the citizenship test 🤣

Sounds much like Spain where I had spent a lot of time BC, Before Children. Our two were horrified when we were on holiday and I went into local mode, straight for the door.

'21:46DdraigGoch

NoSquirrels

British bus etiquette, innit. Surprised you don’t know!

Surely British bus etiquette involves the bus waiting for five minutes while you all go "you first", "no, after you, I insist..."'

Lol dunno maybe in some areas!

Round here you snooze you lose.

Actions are key not words!

And there's loads of young people and kids who will act as the gatekeeper to the bus door, to check those who need a seat get on first. Even if it means (often does!) putting dozens of people on hold while priority people take time they need to get on.

Also pretty good at giving up seats round here.

Tube is totally different that's more like mad Max situation in rush hour! Even with armament! Backpacks, elbows, shoving, glaring, using size to intimidate etc. No holds barred!

London and Edinburgh are a totally different kettle of fish, though

Don’t you have elderly folk in London then?
Or how about people in wheelchairs?
Anyone with mobility issues?
All those folk who can’t do a quick jog down the street?

How the hell do they manage?
Sounds a really fucked up system.
Thank heavens Edinburgh public transport actually works for everyone, not just the fully able-bodied.

@TrashyPanda

London and Edinburgh are a totally different kettle of fish, though

Don’t you have elderly folk in London then?
Or how about people in wheelchairs?
Anyone with mobility issues?
All those folk who can’t do a quick jog down the street?

How the hell do they manage?
Sounds a really fucked up system.
Thank heavens Edinburgh public transport actually works for everyone, not just the fully able-bodied.

Oh read the thread ffs

Londoners have said many times that you let the elderly and anyone with mobility issues or disabilities on first, after that it just gets random if there are lots and lots of people waiting

TrashyPanda

Ooh fighting talk!

Of course London is a totally different kettle of fish to any other UK city! That's a fact. It's not a criticism, judgement and it's not a competition!

It's perfectly standard for different etiquettes, behaviours, stress reactions etc to vary massively depending on a host of factors. How crowded, length of journey and time till next transport, how realistic timetable, how often service v patchy, etc etc.

DH happens to work for tfl surface (includes buses which is his area) and I'm a long term lover of London transport.

If you read my post a little way up I go into some detail on how in my area it works with large numbers waiting, and those who need a seat/ are slower on their feet, encumbered by loads of young children etc.

I take issue heavily with your view that different kettle of fish is essentially irrelevant to etiquette!

Tbc

@TrashyPanda

London and Edinburgh are a totally different kettle of fish, though

Don’t you have elderly folk in London then?
Or how about people in wheelchairs?
Anyone with mobility issues?
All those folk who can’t do a quick jog down the street?

How the hell do they manage?
Sounds a really fucked up system.
Thank heavens Edinburgh public transport actually works for everyone, not just the fully able-bodied.

Yes we do, they just don't usually choose to do buses in Central London at rush hour. If you don't have to be in it then you avoid it.

Everyone would stand aside for someone in a wheelchair or if someone looked frail. You'd only have to say to someone next to you, can I get on with you I can't move so quick. They'd make sure you got space and time.

The buses also kneel if they approach a stop and see someone with a wheelchair, mobility aid or buggy. But they might not see that in a crowd of 200 so someone would help that person get on if the bus can't kneel there.

It might sound fucked up but it works, we manage to get millions of people in and out of the centre twice a day within a couple of hours. It's not always pleasant but it works and disadvantaged people are not forgotten in the scrum.

Different kettle of fish...

Edinburgh population 540,000 ish.

Population London (boroughs, not counting the vast numbers of people who commute in from neighbouring counties, and from further out. Sometimes bonkers distances. Who bar the very wealthiest will all use public transport.

London population is 9,300,000 ish.

Even that is surely indicative of different kettle of fish? I can't see how can say otherwise!

Of course the people who get there first go on the bus first. What are you, a savage?

Best answer I’ve ever seen on AIBU.

As a public transport geek I'm quite jealous of your TFL husband @CheeseMmmm !

(although I'm married to a cheesemonger so perhaps you'd feel the same : )

Was just reading around and apparently in a non-Covid year there are more than 2 BILLION bus journeys every year in London, that's more than in the rest of England combined

So yeah maybe things can be a bit different here

Wiki

London buses-
'In 2019/20, 2,090,000,000 (2.09 Billion) passenger journeys were made.'

London Buses
'We manage a bus fleet of around 9,300 vehicles operating across 675 routes.
... also responsible for around 50 bus stations and more than 19,000 bus stops.'

Different kettle of fish?

This stat is whole Scotland, couldn't find Edinburgh only-

'The statistics show that there were 366 million bus journeys in 2019'.

Fish? Not same. Whether in kettle or not

Is this default competition approach.

Anyone who has different experience etc, even when blandly written neutral observation. Is DISSING me, and my upbringing, area I live, level of intelligence, morals, the brand of socks I wear, my liking for tuna mayo sarnies, and the fact I make Rubens 7:1 water/squash!

I've been to Edinburgh couple of times, I have workmates who live there (well near, ok commute, due to ££££ housing prices closer in!).

There's brilliant botanic gardens, obv the castle, holyrood is incredible modern architecture loads of gorgeous wooden curves, and at least when I went you could go in use toilets!

Also visited the mint liked that a lot as well!

We only had the weekend but it's lovely.

It's fab in a very different way to London. And of course devolved, loads of differences in loads of ways.

Also if my colleagues anything to go by, the swearing etc is incredible. Rich, inventive, often funny. Very much superior to London afaik.

Perhaps start 'wiki' ing the populations of the respective cities. Hardly surprising London has more busses than other uk cities

Yes. Good manners to let those who were there before you on the bus first.

Drives me soft at the bus station when the bus is late. I'm stood in position one (there's footprints) and clearly there first as I couldn't get on last bus with buggy. Then as soon as bus comes everyone swarms round to push ahead. Girl was so close behind me I could barely move so kept stepping back deliberately. Told 6 to stand inside my arms so he didn't get separated from me, she made some comment about not pushing then purposely walked in front of me. It took a couple of drunk older men to stand back and let me on.
Thing is if the people pushing ahead stand in the buggy space I'm going to ask them to move and wait whilst they do so, so there's no actual benefit to pushing ahead of someone with a buggy. You're just being a dick.

@dreamingbohemian

As a public transport geek I'm quite jealous of your TFL husband *@CheeseMmmm* !

(although I'm married to a cheesemonger so perhaps you'd feel the same : )

Was just reading around and apparently in a non-Covid year there are more than 2 BILLION bus journeys every year in London, that's more than in the rest of England combined

So yeah maybe things can be a bit different here

OMFG a cheesemonger!!!!

Please pass my respect and deep gratitude to him for his work

Working for them not so snazzy tbh. Loads of issues with culture, management, cuts, promoting your mates etc. At least on buses, and in jobs at the coal face iyswim.

You know about all the stuff tfl do for lovely people who share your enthusiasm? Secret something or other, Acton etc? Probably!

Here's some links etc for anyone interested-

'The Museum Depot in Acton is our working museum store - a treasure trove of over 320,000 objects.

Three times a year, we throw open the doors and welcome thousands of visitors to explore. Discover rare road and rail vehicles spanning over 100 years, signs, ceramic tiles, original posters, ephemera, ticket machines, and more.' www.ltmuseum.co.uk/whats-on/depot-open-weekends

Hidden London

We did this one few years ago- DH into the history. I loved going around a load of tunnels just left from decades ago. Seeing
ancient old signs, deserted decades old equipment etc, feeling like traveling back in time. I'm sure all the offerings are good.

'Get an intimate peek into one of London’s most intriguing hidden spaces.

Located in Mayfair between Hyde Park Corner and Green Park stations, Down Street had a short life as a working station from 1907 to 1932 but became critical to winning the Second World War when covertly transformed into the Railway Executive Committee’s bomb-proof headquarters.'

www.ltmuseum.co.uk/hidden-london

Mail rail
Went on recently for an event fun event type thing.
There's a museum looked interesting in passing.
Tiny v old mail tube at the heart.
Recommended!
www.postalmuseum.org/visit-us/what-to-expect/mail-rail/

@liveforsummer

Perhaps start 'wiki' ing the populations of the respective cities. Hardly surprising London has more busses than other uk cities

Of course!

The point being responded to though was that irrespective of the fact different kettle of fish, and so queuing etiquette for buses is different but still effective. London transport is shit and fails anyone not fighting fit and ready for the fray...

That's going to get plenty of London people irritated

' London and Edinburgh are a totally different kettle of fish, though'

'Don’t you have elderly folk in London then?
Or how about people in wheelchairs?
Anyone with mobility issues?
All those folk who can’t do a quick jog down the street?

How the hell do they manage?
Sounds a really fucked up system.
Thank heavens Edinburgh public transport actually works for everyone, not just the fully able-bodied.'

Oh read the thread ffs

Instead of just reading, trying comprehending., I was responding to the point that in London folk can’t just wait and get on a bus at a bus stop, cos the buses line up and folk have to physically get from the bus stop, down the line of buses, to their bus. Which isn’t possible for a lot of people.

It’s not rocket science to see that negatively impacts with people with disabilities etc.

Contrasted with Edinburgh, where buses have to pull in at the bus stop itself. So that people can get on safely.