Train travel

George_Michael

goater78 wrote: »

There are still things a man should be prepared to do if they are polite eg open a door for a woman, carry a heavy bag, etc.

I will open a door for anyone, be it a man or woman, and the same goes for asking if they need help with a heavy bag.

I stand by my earlier comment and think that any fit person who openly states that they will not offer up their seat to someone more needy simply because they are a woman is arrogant in the extreme.
The poster in question even stated:

Its all just common courtesy

Surely if someone thinks it's common courtesy then they shouldn't be selective in whom to be courteous to.

The main basis of her argument was rather the reverse - that in terms of physical strength women are inferior to men.

But that isn't all that she stated.

Equal rights yes...but courtesy and commonsense should still apply.

katejo

goater78 wrote: »

Some 20 year old lass offered me her seat the other week. I'm a 34 year old man with no disabilities. I didn't know whether i should be offended or not!

I wasn't sure if she thought I was very old or physically impaired!

I fall within the middle aged woman category and sometimes find that i am offered a seat by a younger passenger . It makes me feel older than I am and I turn it down politely.

whitesatin

em

moneyistooshorttomention wrote: »

Equal rights yes...but courtesy and commonsense should still apply. It is a fact that womens bodies are physically weaker than mens bodies and I would say that, accordingly, there probably isn't as much strength to cope with physically standing. Also, many women will be wearing pretty uncomfortable footwear (heels or the like) and very few men will be. Anyway...it's never possible to tell if a woman is pregnant or no (unless she has obviously reached an age where this wouldn't be the case).

As a middle-aged woman myself I no longer have to offer my seat to anyone - as there will always be children or men sitting down (ie so it's clearly not up to me to be the one to do so). But, when I was younger I would give up a seat for an elderly person (of either sex) and just glare meaningfully at the child or man who should have been the one to do so instead.

As a middle-aged woman - if I could see that everyone sitting was same sex and at least same age group, then I would give up my seat for someone obviously older/iller than myself.

Mind you, I did notice a couple of men who were sitting down and the woman they were with was standing and was amusing myself wondering how long the relationship would last after the train journey was over before the woman had the sense to start analysing whether the man concerned was maybe a bit too selfish/thoughtless of her needs to stay in a relationship with him....I would have been a bit shocked if any boyfriend I ever had had expected to me stand by his side whilst he sat down and he would soon have been "history".


Now I know you are just winding us all up.

cbrown372

I was pregnant when middle aged, 42, and would have happily taken a seat if offered then but not on a train when someone had booked and paid for said seat.

Now considerably older I have a senior rail card for discounted rail travel and wouldn't dream of travelling on a train without being able to book a seat.

Last year on holiday sitting on the balcony overlooking the pool I watched a young girl hauling sunbeds and seats around while her boyfriend sat on a seat with his back to us. Once sorted to what she wanted she got him off the seat to move and he had two artificial legs and only one arm. While you are sitting in your judgemental bubble on the train just remember things may not be what they seem, especially if you are contemplating tipping a drink over people.

daveyjp

Local trains are no worse than years ago. The old dmus were pretty grim and the slam door electrics were hardly luxurious.

Where we are let down is the intercity services. East Coast mainline has excellent rolling stock. Very spacious, but they no longer have a restaurant.

The class 220 dmus are awful. Noisy and cramped. Give me a 125 any day to do Edinburgh to Penzance.

Dunroamin

George_Michael wrote: »

So women fought for equal rights then a woman comes out with comments such as this:



That is not equal rights. That is you thinking that you are superior to men and children.

Children should be standing for adults of either gender.

oscarward

I too am of the age when I can remember steam trains in regular use etc. It used to be a treat to take my son on a train. But since changing jobs I've started travelling on trains a lot in the last 6 months and yes it's overcrowded and a not very pleasant experience.

But get there early to get your reserved seat and put up with it.

My last journey was perhaps the best, for some reason the booking web site automatically selected 1st class for Manchester to Durham change at York.

1st Class on a Cross Country voyager is very pleasant, even better than Virgin, I've decided. It was only £7 more than standard!

paddyrg

yangptangkipperbang wrote: »

..............or you can get bargain Advance First Class fares.

Exactly! You can only book bargain advance tickets on off peak services anyhow Booking the first class ones in advance brings the price down to be in the ball park of the standard walk on fare, it's how I travel to and from Paddington when I need to go in

whitesatin

paddyrg wrote: »

Exactly! You can only book bargain advance tickets on off peak services anyhow Booking the first class ones in advance brings the price down to be in the ball park of the standard walk on fare, it's how I travel to and from Paddington when I need to go in

I travel regularly to Glasgow and always go first class. Not that expensive.

Gavin83

fredandwilma wrote: »

no one can make them move.

Just move them yourself if you want the seat that badly.

The train staff will generally help anyway. Me and my girlfriend arrived at our booked seats once to find two people sitting in them. After literally about 10 seconds the train guard appeared and made them move. Under different circumstances I may have let them have the seats but they were both able bodied (2 lads aged about 20) and we'd both just run a half marathon.

moneyistooshorttomention wrote: »

It is a fact that womens bodies are physically weaker than mens

That'll be popular.

Honestly a woman is just as able to stand as a man. If she is wearing inappropriate shoes then next time she'll learn not to wear them.

I'd happily give up my seat for someone who clearly needed it (and have done many a time) but a able bodied woman really doesn't count.

To be honest if I attempted to give up my seat for a middle aged woman I think the majority would actually find it insulting.

goater78 wrote: »

There are still things a man should be prepared to do if they are polite eg open a door for a woman, carry a heavy bag, etc.

To be honest holding open the door and helping someone who is struggling with a bag is just basic manners. Gender really shouldn't come into it.