Why do some people not give others space???

[CertaintyofCake]

I just fine some peoples behaviour so baffling at times. I was on the tube in London the other day. I live at the very start/end of a line and if it’s not rush hour it’s very quiet normally when I get on. I walked about half way up the platform and got on. Pretty much every carriage I walked past was totally empty. It was still 5 mins until it was due to depart. My chosen carriage was also totally empty. It’s a central line train so has three “sections” of seats. I sat in the middle of one section at one end of the carriage. A couple of minutes later a large group got on my carriage at the other end to where I’m sitting. About 12 of them in total both men and women. Very loud and chatting and laughing. They proceeded to walk the length of the carriage towards me and all sit around me in the seat section I’m in!! Two people directly next to me on each side and right opposite. So they completely walked through an identical section of totally empty seats to crowd around me. Why??? I stood up and moved carriages in which they responded by asking what my problem was and all laughed hysterically.

Why do people do this?? I don’t care that they were all loud and shouting at each other. I’m a Londoner I’m used to it. I’m also used to being crowded on the tube. But why on a pretty much empty train in an almost empty carriage would you actively walk towards someone by themselves to sit immediately next to them/ around them shouting at each other?? Why go out of your way to make someone feel weird/uncomfortable/irritated when there’s other identical seats etc! I honestly find this sort of thing really odd.

Sorry. Rant over.

No idea. It baffles me too. The only explanation ive come up with is they are part sheep, driven to stay with the flock.

Not sure why they did it, but I wouldn't like it either. I probably would have sat there, seething, though so well done for getting up and walking away!

Pick pockets do this. If people are crowding you when there is alternative space available watch out for your phone/ bag/ wallet.

Urgh I hate this too! Not the tube as I’m from elsewhere but in a completely empty cafe and the next customer then chooses the table right beside my mum and I and not even the furthest chair away but the one closest to us, why?
In an empty car park, they park right next to you even if I’m sat with my door open they pull up and beep for you to shut your door and there’s 40 other empty spaces to choose from, fuck off!
Doctors/hospital waiting room, sit right beside you despite 10+ other empty seats?
I don’t understand the reasons behind it.

I’m sure it’s some kind of herd instinct. I notice it a lot in huge car parks. I always try to park in a distant, empty section so as to minimise risk of dings, but even if there are 30 other empty spaces surrounding me, someone will often park next to my car by the time I’ve walked back from
the ticket machine! Bizarre and annoying!

It’s bizarre isn’t it! I had this once on a train at Waterloo I’d been working late so train was very quiet. I had two seats to myself and lots of empty seats around. Man gets on and sits next to me rather than sit in a set of two empty seats. He then proceeded to get a takeaway out a paper bag and eat it! It was at this point I stood up said excuse me and swapped seats to an empty set literally two rows in front!

They can sit where they like

Dh and I were discussing this. Apparently it’s normal human behaviour according to research. I find it odd.
Where dh works there is a very big employee car park. Always lots of empty spaces. Dh gets to work early and has always parked in roughly the same space. Someone has bought the same car as we have and now parks next to dh every single day, even though there must be 50 empty spaces.

Thanks for this stunning insight; OK everybody thread's over.

They can sit where they like
😆 🤣
You've answered a question that wasn't asked!

@CertaintyofCake I don't know either & all if the above post too!!

As they commented on you moving my guess is it was deliberate. A fun way to wind up complete strangers. I used to know someone who, if someone stopped him in the street to ask directions, he would send them completely the wrong way. He thought it was hilarious. Some people are just twats

It's odd isn't it? I have lived in London my whole life. Sometimes people do it on services that will definitely fill up in the next couple of stops anyway so I guess it doesn't matter, but why on earth they do it on the likes of a quiet bus route in the middle of the day I have no idea. I agree with PP though that it's probably mindless herding instinct.

This did cross my mind but there didn’t seem to be any planning to it if you know what I mean. They got on at the other end of the carriage so they wouldn’t have seen I was there until they were on and they were all just talking and just headed directly for my area. No one stopped to start to sit the other two areas and they decided against it or anything. And it didn’t look like they even noticed me as they were so wrapped up in their loud conversation. They were also at least in their 30s/40s so not young teens etc trying to be annoying. But i guess it’s possible they had all discussed in advance that if they see someone by themselves they’ll deliberately sit next to them. But that just seems even weirder to me.

I do technically understand this theory. But they were already a herd/flock by themselves!! I didn’t want to join it! 😂

I hate it. Especially when a bus is near enough empty and the person chooses to sit on the seat next to you like why?!
The fact they were laughing though makes me feel like they were winding people up on purpose or trying to pick pocket.

I was in a National Trust café the other day - virtually empty. I knew I was going to be there a while as I was waiting for my DD to finish her volunteering shift, so I tucked myself away in the corner away from anyone else who might come along, and got stuck into my book.
Sure enough a couple turned up pushing their grandson in a buggy. Grandson was about 3 and fast asleep. The whole café was empty, including 3 other empty corners. They came and sat right next to me, and parked the buggy immediately behind me.
I became aware of a very strange noise, couldn't place it, but it was really distracting.
I realised that there was some sort of device attached to the buggy producing what I assume was white noise/grey noise?? quite loudly. And the GPs had parked it right behind me, when there was a completely empty room. Grandson was completely out of it so not sure it was really necessary anyway.

I had to get up and move.

I would imagine it is probably due to where they got of rather than anything else.

Not a train but we went to a hardware shop yesterday, massive car park practically empty. I parked and then two blokes parked directly behind me nearly in my boot. Good job dh was with me because I think I would have left had I been on my own.

My FIL always goes mad because when he arrives at a campsite (they have a motorhome) he drives to the quietest part of the site, furthest away from everyone else and parks. Almost without fail the next person to turn up parks next to him 😂

That is so that the cars can be friends.

We've clearly found and triggered the person with no respect for other's personal space.

No, really? What a complete surprise!

🤣

I’m not sure if you meant got on or get off but surely either way you avoid crowding around a solo person? The tube carriage has 4 lots of doors. I was sitting by one set right at one end. They got on at the last set at the opposite end. They actively walked along the entire carriage to where I was sat. I’d have understood it more if I was sitting directly where they got on. (Although to be honest if it was me I’d keep walking to the next section if I saw someone sitting right where I got on). I will actively avoid sitting right near someone pretty much all the time.