To think on a crowded bus, your bag doesn’t need a seat?

[Yourbagdoesntneedaseat]

On a bus earlier today, going to visit a relative in the hospital.
The bus was full of school kids, who were screeching and being generally annoying. There was only one free seat on the bus, and this woman’s handbag was in the middle of it. She was sitting in the wheelchair seats, so as not to drip feed, but she wasn’t in a wheelchair she just had the seats folded down as there was no wheelchair user on the bus. One seat she was sat on, and the next seat had her bag on.

I was tired and really wanted to sit down, especially as the journey was going to be a good 20 minutes.

I asked her politely if I could sit down, she had headphones on so she didn’t hear me at first, I asked again and she huffed at me, and put her headphones back in.

For a third time, I said please can you move your bag, I’m going to sit here.

She heard me but ignored me, so I picked up her bag, put it on the floor next to her legs, and sat down anyway.

Well she went off on one at me, saying that she had to pay for her bag to be professionally cleaned now (the floor wasn’t even that dirty), and that I touched her property without her permission.

I ignored her complaining, sat down and ignored her until she got off. Told my partner what happened and he said that she WBU to refuse to move her bag, but that I was BU to move her bag anyway, and I should have stood up.

Also, if a wheelchair user or an elderly/disabled/pregnant needed those seats, I would have stood up in a heartbeat
AIBU?

Your husband is a plum, of course you're not being unreasonable. Hopefully bag lady might just move her bag onto her lap next time if she's so precious over it.

Other option was to sit on her bag, you are not unreasonable.

I'm prepared to say to people either you move your bag or I do, your choice. Never had to so far.

Your husband's an idiot, BTW.

I honestly don't know what is wrong with people these days!! A man on the train nearly started a fight with another man who wanted to sit in the seat that the first man had his bag on!! It was awful!

Seats are for sitting on, not bags!!

I’ve sat on someone bag who did that m. I put in my headphones and ignored their protests. I had asked twice politely.

*elderly/disabled/pregnant person

well DP said that if she didn’t want to move her bag I should have just stood up rather than actually move her bag, but to be honest I just wanted to sit down. I did feel like a bit of a twat but I feel like if the bus is packed, you can’t really put your bag on a seat. If the bus was quiet, I’d not mind

I was on a train to Newcastle once where a woman argued with another passenger over a seat but the first woman wanted her cabin bag to have the seat and not her! That was an interesting one!

If someone refuses to move property then moving it for them is the next best step and completely reasonable in the circumstances you describe.

Did she pay for her bag to take a seat?

She was just an entitled idiot. Of course she should have expected that on a full bus she should have to move her bag onto her lap if someone needed a seat. The headphones were in so she could pretend she hadn't heard you.

I bet the rest of the bus were silently cheering you. So annoying.

Is your DP also a twat who thinks his bag needs its own seat? I genuinely can't see why he would think what you did was unreasonable otherwise???

today a woman put her bag on the seat beside her and moved over and glared at me I'm afraid I wasn't as brave as you although you got an earful , yanbu people are just rude !

This!

Good on you OP. If she's that prescious, maybe next time she'll put it on her lap. What a twat she is.

I applaud you 👏

You were absolutely in the right and did the right thing. You asked politely, she ignored you. The sense of self entitlement on her part is amazing.

It’s a shame you couldn’t of thrown the bag out of the window or off the bus!

I wish more people would do what you did so that people get the message that bags don't need seats. We've all plonked a bag next to us on a half empty bus/train but decent people move them when it gets busier.

Of course yanbu. You asked her more than once. I would have done exactly the same. I was on a packed train and the woman in front had shopping bags in the seat next to her when an elderly woman got on. A standing man asked the sitting woman with bags to move for the lady, she refused. He then moved the bags to the shelf above and helped the elderly lady sit down and the whole carriage applauded! 😂

I would have put her bag on the floor too.

Surely your bag doesn’t need its own seat even on a quiet bus?!