Who should have priority on public transport

[anon789561]

Having seen this video on BBC London today I couldn't help but think of good old Thailand. I personally cannot fathom why older people let kids sit down on the MRT and BTS etc. Was always the other way round when I was brought up!

 

 

[DaddyWarbucks]

The elderly and the disabled.

That's the obvious answer to this simple minded question.

[impulse]

3 minutes ago, DaddyWarbucks said:

The elderly and the disabled.

That's the obvious answer to this simple minded question.

 

Different cultures, different answers.  In spite of being an old fart myself, I always give up my seat for kids in Thailand.  It's not how it was where I grew up, but I'm not in Kansas any more.  Or Texas.

 

Edited July 18, 2017 by impulse

[tonray]

And remember if you are sitting by the door and a monk gets on the bus, better get up fast.

 

In Malaysia, because of the Chinese influence definitely elderly get preference. In fact once when riding on the Monorail, there was a Chinese man in his 90s sitting next to a teenage girl while I was standing and holding the strap. He jabs the teen with his umbrella, says something in Chinese to her and offers the seat to me with the comment that old men like us should not have to stand....ha ha

[Paul Catton]

Newer signage for MRT

Older signage for MRT.

Apparently the "blessed little angels !" have shifted downards in the pecking order.

Would appear plenty of ThaiVisa members now rank just behind monkhood    

[tonray]

11 minutes ago, Paul Catton said:

Newer signage for MRT

Older signage for MRT.

Apparently the "blessed little angels !" have shifted downards in the pecking order.

Would appear plenty of ThaiVisa members now rank just behind monkhood    

 

 

Is the third one on the new signage a guy with a Martini ?

[Paul Catton]

4 minutes ago, tonray said:

 

 

Is the third one on the new signage a guy with a Martini ?

Alas no, looks like too many martinis, now suffering with gout and needing a crutch.

Could also be a TV member

[champers]

5 hours ago, tonray said:

 

 

Is the third one on the new signage a guy with a Martini ?

Can't be James Bond. When he is on a train he is fighting, chasing a villain or being chased by a villain.

[Suradit69]

5 hours ago, impulse said:

In spite of being an old fart myself, I always give up my seat for kids in Thailand.

As an old fart in Thailand I rarely bother with public transportation anymore. I used to enjoy using the BTS when I visited Bangkok, not so much for the cost savings but just because it gave me a brief experience of being back in a major urban environment and being able to navigate  my way around the big city jungle. Now I prefer car, taxi or even tuk tuk even if it requires some price negotiations.

 

As far as priorities are concerned, I have on numerous occasions had a full shopping basket  at 7-Eleven and been waved to the head of the cashier's queue by young Thais in Pattaya. Not quite the same thing as seating on public transport, but it involves a similar mind-set and in that regard I think Thais generally are considerate.

[LawrenceN]

6 hours ago, DaddyWarbucks said:

The elderly and the disabled.

That's the obvious answer to this simple minded question.

Friendly amendment: let's include obviously pregnant women.

 

Most public transport in Bangkok has seats marked for monks as well. I'm not sure if that rule has the force of law. I never heard of anyone getting fined for not giving up one of those seats to a monk, but it's a polite thing to do.

[kannot]

11 minutes ago, LawrenceN said:

Friendly amendment: let's include obviously pregnant women.

 

Most public transport in Bangkok has seats marked for monks as well. I'm not sure if that rule has the force of law. I never heard of anyone getting fined for not giving up one of those seats to a monk, but it's a polite thing to do.

why?

[kannot]

28 minutes ago, champers said:

Can't be James Bond. When he is on a train he is fighting, chasing a villain or being chased by a villain.

or tied to the tracks but thankfully  not testing coin strengths on them

[kannot]

small kids could sit on a  parents lap 

[kannot]

28 minutes ago, Suradit69 said:

As an old fart in Thailand I rarely bother with public transportation anymore. I used to enjoy using the BTS when I visited Bangkok, not so much for the cost savings but just because it gave me a brief experience of being back in a major urban environment and being able to navigate  my way around the big city jungle. Now I prefer car, taxi or even tuk tuk even if it requires some price negotiations.

 

As far as priorities are concerned, I have on numerous occasions had a full shopping basket  at 7-Eleven and been waved to the head of the cashier's queue by young Thais in Pattaya. Not quite the same thing as seating on public transport, but it involves a similar mind-set and in that regard I think Thais generally are considerate.

The Bts is that full these days you can hardly get on it, desperately needs another 2  carriages added, took them years to add a single extra  carriage

[Paul Catton]

29 minutes ago, LawrenceN said:

Friendly amendment: let's include obviously pregnant women.

 

Most public transport in Bangkok has seats marked for monks as well. I'm not sure if that rule has the force of law. I never heard of anyone getting fined for not giving up one of those seats to a monk, but it's a polite thing to do.

New signage depicts pregnant women from 3 to 4 in the pecking order..

As an aside, I was initially flattered by a young Japanese woman wishing to vacate her seat on a crowded train in Tokyo for me, especially with Opal standing right next to me. 

Of course I declined, and then subsequently my ego deflated when I saw the pictogram of an "aged person with cane" in signage as priority seating behind me.

Neither in reality could really apply (or so I tell myself).

[dotpoom]

I think the OP has got it the wrong way round. It's not up to old people to allow or dis-allow young people to sit while they stand......it's up to young people to offer their seat to them.

[anon789561]

7 minutes ago, dotpoom said:

I think the OP has got it the wrong way round. It's not up to old people to allow or dis-allow young people to sit while they stand......it's up to young people to offer their seat to them.

that's basically what I said. that where I come from young people used to offer their seats to older people but in Thailand from what I see they prioritise children. I would say in London over the years more people expect you to let their kids sit down when they are perfectly capable of standing.

[AboutThaim]

8 hours ago, tonray said:

 

 

Is the third one on the new signage a guy with a Martini ?

Maybe too many martinis, he looks like he could be legless!

[roo860]

Can't be James Bond. When he is on a train he is fighting, chasing a villain or being chased by a villain.

On the roof.

Sent from my SM-G920F using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app

[Cadbury]

I travel on the city public buses both in Bangkok and Hanoi and I am an old fogey. Vietnamese young ones always politely stand up to offer me their seat. Thai young ones never stand up for me and never make eye contact. Even when their clapped out metropolitan buses throw me around the cabin like a rag doll.

In the meantime the lovely new blue buses for Thailand sit on the waterfront until envelopes change hands.

[Heng]

Premium seating (and appropriately adjusted fares), like on planes.  

[hawker9000]

20 hours ago, DaddyWarbucks said:

The elderly and the disabled.

That's the obvious answer to this simple minded question.

I would add the pregnant, and in Thailand, monks.   But give up my seat for kids?   No way!

 

If on a baht bus, and someone getting on raises any flags with me, I'll likely just get up and go stand on the running board on the back...   (Not out of courtesy; out of caution.)

 

[hawker9000]

11 hours ago, Happy enough said:

that's basically what I said. that where I come from young people used to offer their seats to older people but in Thailand from what I see they prioritise children. I would say in London over the years more people expect you to let their kids sit down when they are perfectly capable of standing.

" but in Thailand from what I see they prioritise children"

 

What in the world are you talking about?

[jeab1980]

First come first served my reasoning. Old farts shouldnt be taking a bus or tram they should stay indoors and stop filling up good seats. Pregnant women! Well they wanted a sprog there problem.

Disabled yes.

Women on there own they could if they so desired sit on my knee.

 

Edited July 19, 2017 by jeab1980

[petedk]

I thought the seats on the BTS and MRT were reserved for mobile addicts.

 

They lower their faces into the mobile and see nothing else around them.

[rogeroc]

Was on the Metro in Dubai, amazed to see female only carriages, in one half of an open carriage females were sitting comfortable, a few metres away guys were cramped lke sardines trying to keep their feet on the right side of the line. A couple of Western girls were sardines with their male partners, good on them !

[malt25]

"Who should have priority on public transport"  My vote goes to the driver.

 

 

[impulse]

10 hours ago, rogeroc said:

Was on the Metro in Dubai, amazed to see female only carriages, in one half of an open carriage females were sitting comfortable, a few metres away guys were cramped lke sardines trying to keep their feet on the right side of the line. A couple of Western girls were sardines with their male partners, good on them !

 

Probably like Japan, which implemented female only carriages as a result of thousands of complaints by women of being groped by opportunistic pervs maintaining their balance by very selectively grabbing the nearest boob or butt.

 

Edited July 20, 2017 by impulse

[geriatrickid]

On 7/17/2017 at 10:32 PM, DaddyWarbucks said:

The elderly and the disabled.

That's the obvious answer to this simple minded question.

It is not a simple minded question because the answer depends very much on how one considers the concept of safety and the definition of disabled and elderly.

Consider this;

- It is not safe for young children to stand because they do not have the strength to brace themselves, let alone possess the sense to stay safe. Also there are perverts  

who rub against  kids etc.

- What is disabled? To me it is someone using a  cane or walker and who  has difficulty walking. It is an otherwise normal looking teenager with brittle bone disease, or a middle aged woman  with osteoporosis. What of a  war veteran with a shrapnel injury, or a young worker with an injury that is not visible to others?

- What is elderly?  There are some 70 and 80 year olds  who are in fantastic shape and can do cartwheels. Do they have priority over the  fat guy with respiratory failure?

 

[Chou Anou]

I always offer to give up my seat on the Skytrain to the elderly or pregnant women, and to parent/child combos where the child is, say, 6 or younger.  I have a new awareness of the latter due to lots of crowded Skytrain rides with my girlfriend and her grandson, starting when he was 2+...it's really tough traveling with small children, and I appreciate Thais offering seats to us when they see us struggling (and there's always someone who does).