To expect to sit on an empty train seat?

[NellieTheElephant1]

Travelling on a busy train to London, lady wearing a mask sitting on a window seat with her bags next to her on the aisle seat. No other seats available nearby. Asked her politely 'excuse me please' indicating that I wanted to sit there. She mumbled 'sorry no I need to distance'. Surely if you're that worried about Covid don't travel on public transport at busy times?

I had something similar on an underground train. all seats taken apart from one with a bag belonging to woman in next seat. I'm disabled, had a walking stick at the time. I asked her if she would please move her bag so I could sit down, she refused so I sat on her bag. She had to ask me very nicely before I stood up to let her remove it.

Are you seriously suggesting we should play by the rules of 'the rest of Europe' and ignore our own government? I mean I know they are a bit shit but where do you draw the line at ignoring our laws to follow someone else's

It's not the law here to NOT wear a facemark, is it? The poster was just pointing out that other places still require them.

Masks didn't work in Scotland.

How do you know OP isn't vulnerable? You might be displaying ableism towards op.

Surely we’re not still under the impression that being 1m away will magically protect you from covid even if you’re in a confined space and breathing the same air?

Sigh, I only mentioned the disabled railcard because that can be used to back up any claims the lady may have of a disability that requires distancing from people due to real fear when travelling alone…ie PTSD, Anxiety disorder, Autism sensory overload, etc. Or a physical disability that prevents you from bending over to pick bags up off a floor- back, hip, neck so they must be on a seat by you.

I understand not every disabled person has a railcard, but any claim she might make to a Conductor as to a disability would be more believable (to me) if she had a card.

I've seen this happen before. Covid is an excuse.

Even if you have a disabled railcard, it doesn't entitle you to additional seats unless you pay for them.

I got on a busy train last week, could only spot one free seat and the journey was over an hour long. Asked mask-free lady in window seat to shift her bag so I could sit in the aisle seat.

She looked me up and down unsmilingly, said nothing and took a long time even to initiate movement in order to lift her bags. I smiled brightly and plonked myself down. She responded by retrieving a mask from her bag and made a performance, complete with heavy sighs, of putting it on.

I travel by public transport frequently. Wonder if I need to squirrel away some rejoinder to chancers passengers trying to claim a seat for their bags on the grounds they "need to distance".

True, and for all we know she may have paid for two seats. The railcard gives you money off your ticket plus another one for a carer. The other seat could be for a carer whose gone to the toilet. Nobody knows anything except that she said she couldn’t move the bags.

i do think it unlikely, which is why I’d find a conductor to confront her officially over not giving up the seat. If it were a likely scenario, I’d just put up with it.

which part of spreading aerosols pattern do you not understand?
if you had any idea you would have actually put you bags in the seat in front of you as the priority.
🤦‍♀️🙄

If they can't bend over then put the bags in the rack above the seat, or ask somebody else for help.

Seems like it, doesn't it? I don't know else how bags-on-seats lady is imagining she will be protected from any potential covid from the people sitting in front of and behind her, but not from the OP sitting next to her. Does covid only move left to right?

Well if you're martyrish enough to stand on a train journey to avoid upsetting someone @pixie5121 , that's up to you. The OP is under no obligation to do so.

If you have a disability that means you can’t bend down, then you put your bag on your lap.

im not sure it is a reasonable adjustment for a person with PTSD etc to deny a fellow passenger a seat.

She mumbled 'sorry no I need to distance'

Were you not wearing a mask? You could have put on a mask to reassure her. I agree that she can't expect to keep an empty seat next to her on a crowded train, but you could wear a mask.

The bags havent paid to sit there. You did. Its cheeky. She needed to move them.

What trains are some of you getting where there's a "conductor" available to sort out seat disputes? I haven't seen one since about 1995.

I think people are loosing sight of the obvious flaw in the argument of “I am trying to keep others/myself safe but not sitting next to someone”
you are literally much closer to the person in the seat in front in direct line of your breath aerosols and you are in much closer direct alignment of breath particles from person behind you.

We have guards on most local services and the LNER have train managers.

She might not be doing anything illegal by travelling on a busy train while infectious with covid (if that's the case here) but she'd still be doing something wrong.

Just because something is legal doesn't mean its right.

All the trains I travel on have ticket collectors/person who checks it's safe for the driver to leave the station/rubbish collectors.

Great Northern always has at least one. Usually two. These are direct trains to London though. Not the tube.

Then if she is so concerned about spreading Covid why is she on the train in the first place.