Prams on buses

Alex-Riley.

MamaMoo wrote: »

Thankfully, where I live there are buses with space for between 2 and 4 prams (or 1-3 prams and a wheelchair)
They also have between 4 & 6 extra legroom seats for the elderly/infirm.
What p*sses me off is getting on a bus and finding elderly people sitting in the fold down pram/wheelchair area (and clinging on for dear life) because young people are sat in the extra legroom seats at the front, and won't move.
If I get on a bus and the pram seats are full, I will politely ask the person to move. If it's an elderly person, I will also usually ask someone sat in the extra legroom bit who shouldn't be there to move, so the older person doesn't have to go and sit halfway down the bus!
I was on the bus (minus the pram) the other day, and sat in the extra space bit (due to being 37w pregnant) the other seats for the elderly were occupied by healthy looking middle aged people.
An elderly lady got on, and I moved so she could sit down. Not one other person in those seats batted an eyelid.
A pram got on a few stops after, and there were a group of women sat at the front who were refusing to move as they were "here first" (despite there being plenty of seats both upstairs and down) eventually, the poor girl went to get off at the next stop, but the bus driver got out, and told them to move or get off the bus, and he wasn't driving anywhere until they did one or the other.
Cue a round of applause for the bus driver, and the moody looking women moving their fat ar*es upstairs!

I wish our buses were a bit more like these because only 1 person in a wheelchair or 1 pram can fit on it's so annoying

fluffnutter

lauraandclive wrote: »

And posts number 2 and 3 prove my point. It can be quite nerve-wracking having a child for the first time, getting out and about. Perhaps you can think about that next time you're sneering at someone with a pram?

And I will help where I can. I love kids and I'm quite happy to make allowances for them. However, there's a balance. It's your choice to have a child - don't expect people to inconvenience themselves too much because of your choice!

PinkLipgloss

fluffnutter wrote: »

And I will help where I can. I love kids and I'm quite happy to make allowances for them. However, there's a balance. It's your choice to have a child - don't expect people to inconvenience themselves too much because of your choice!

Absolutely. I don't expect any "special allowances" however I think it's only right that parents/carers with prams should be given priority in the pram area on the bus.

In the case of the OP I think it's 100% right that the lady was told to move. However it appears the mother and driver were rude which I don't agree with.

mangomangotree

Everyone thinks they are more entitled than everyone else to everything. Not only that, but most people lack basic social skills. If you have a pram and want someone to move so you can get enough space, just say please and thank you. Maybe if the little chav would have showed some manners, the old lady moving wouldn't be so much of a big deal. I am more than happy to help in any way I can, just be nice about it.

mysk_girl

I travel regularly by bus with my son in his buggy. Buses here have 1 wheelchair/ pram space and another where you can get a pram in. I've only ever had problems once when there were already 3 buggys on (you can get 2 in the wheelchair space if you squeeze up) and a woman with a side-by-side double wanted to get on. Driver told her she has to fold it or wait for the next one (15 minutes) and she kicked off big time. I was in the small space and would have offered to move but the doubles won't fit in that space, you need the whole of the wheelchair space. She was screaming at the driver to make the other 2 ladies fold theirs, which would have involved waking 2 sleeping babies. And her 2 were both awake. Just a horrible attitude. And I would always fold mine if a wheelchair needed the space.

jackieb

I never used to take the bus with my pram or even the buggy. I just walked most of the time. But back then you couldn't have got a buggy on even if you'd wanted as there was no buses that you could wheel your buggy onto.

fluffnutter

Back in the day you had to take your baby out, fold up the buggy and stick it in the rack. Personally I think we've moved on from that and pram slots on buses are an improvement. But just remember - it's not your right! It's a courtesy, a good one IMO but a please and thank you when people jump up to make allowances for your screeching child wouldn't go amiss

barbiedoll

Prams have only been allowed onto buses for the last 10 years, so how did us mums manage before that? Did we stay at home and never venture out? No, of course not!

When my son was born, I had a pram which I simply couldn't fold down and take on the bus, it was a two-handed job to fold it. So I walked everywhere, including 3 miles each way to my mum's house, 2 miles each way to the nearest large shopping centre and at least a mile each way to the park, plus the extra walking when I got there. I was at home all day with him then so it was no big deal if the walk took me a couple of hours.

When he was six months old, I bought a small "umbrella" type buggy and the world (and the buses) were our oyster. I used to take him out of the buggy, fold it up and carry him, the buggy and a couple of bags of shopping onto the bus. And I used to go out every day.

Maybe that's why everyone used to ask me how I got my figure back so soon after giving birth!

I know that if you live in a rural area, you need to be able to use the buses with a pram, but here in London, we see women at the bus stop who will fight to get on the bus and then travel two stops! It's just sheer laziness, and they are often so rude to other passengers. Last year, in the snowy weather, a woman tried to get onto a crowded bus with her pram, despite there being absolutely no room. Everyone moved down to try to accommodate her and when she finally managed to get on, she didn't have any money to pay the fare! She wouldn't get off, the driver refused to move and we were all stuck there until someone paid it for her, just so that we could get moving again. She travelled less than half a mile before she got off! :mad:
That's probably why most people here in London, hate prams on buses!

zaksmum

lauraandclive wrote: »

Not an elderly person, no. You stated the logo showed a wheelchair and a pram. The elderly lady had neither. The girl had a pram.

And I'm sorry to say it's people with your attitude who make me very nervous of getting a bus now I have a very young baby and a pram. I've seen how awkward it can be getting a pram on a bus, and the fact that other passengers can have such a negative view of prams just make it an experience I will probably never do.

I understand your point about the elderly lady, but the few occasions I have been on a bus, the passengers always have to do what the driver tells them. Especially with a pram otherwise they get evicted from the bus. So the girl probably had experience of that and knew her pram had to go in the pram slot. And no, she shouldn't have to walk. I'm sure it wasn't too much effort for the elderly lady to move as surely she had to walk to get on/ off the bus/ to her destination etc.

I believe the wheelchair symbol indicates a disabled person rather than an actual wheelchair user, and the old lady had a stick and was clearly disabled. And the girl was FAR more able to walk than the old lady!

fluffnutter

zaksmum wrote: »

I believe the wheelchair symbol indicates a disabled person rather than an actual wheelchair user, and the old lady had a stick and was clearly disabled. And the girl was FAR more able to walk than the old lady!

I tend to agree. Although it's worth pointing out that all these types of sign are merely courtesies. It's not a crime to sit there; it's all about assessing the situation, having a bit of compassion and making a judgement about whose need is greatest.

Something that this girl with the pram clearly failed to do. Or did so with so little grace as to render her rude and unpleasant. Great. We should jump up to help people who are rude and unpleasant. After all that's what the sign says we should do.

What happened to just working it out for ourselves and being kind to each other??