Here's an itching question that needs an answer:
Is there a reason why tourists hate standing in the back of the F-Market historic streetcars?
I was riding the F-Market today from the platform near Embarcadero station to Pier 39, and when the orange colored Milan car approached, I thought it was crowded. But once I got in, I moved all the way to the back of the car that there was so much room, I could literally lay down on the floor and not even kick someone. During the entire ride, the sardine packed mob that conquered the first 3/4 of the cab and never even moved towards the rear.
Even worse, I was watching people at the boarding platforms frustrated like hell that the trolley skipped them, and seeing me, the only guy with plenty of room in the rear.
Yet... while it is a frequent problem with the tourists, it occasionally happens on the regular Muni routes too. I'd say "excuse me" and "pardon me" to get through the swarm, and there's plenty of comfy room to stand in the rear of the bus!
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Here's my take to the problem:
I think people always believe the back of the bus is always full of the "bad" people and usually the easiest sign is the graffiti and glass etching on the rear windows and on the walls. Typically, nothing ever happens or goes wrong as people go on their merry way home.
But here's the strange part: the F-Market is relatively clean and always safe. I've never seen any graffiti or destruction to the Milan cars, but the PCCs sometimes have a little graffiti, but not much (maybe because of the knee-banging legroom of the seats close proximity).
So what are the tourists afraid of by not scooting themselves to the back of the F-Market? Would you enjoy having the trolley skip you because tourists can't understand a damn request by the driver to shove your butt to the back?
On several occasions, I even yelled out to people to move to the back of the train, but does anyone even listen? HELL NO. Maybe I should buy a cattle prod.
5 comments:
They might be afraid of not getting out on time, even though Milan cars have a THIRD DOOR that could be used to let people out.
Tourists are retarded thats why. They seem to think they are going to miss the stop if they move to the back.
I shout out "MOVE IT" and people move to the back... if not, then I say "FUCKING TOURSITS! YOUR STOP IS AT THE END OF THE LINE..!"
Tourists stay near the front so they can see out the front window to make sure they don't miss their stop. If the drivers would consistently call out the stops, that would help mitigate this problem. That said, it's not just a tourist thing. Now that school has started it means having to navigate a huge crowd of giant-backpack wearing pre-teens all of whom crowd up front.
Most American tourists have no real exposure to public transit and don't understand the concepts...they are still trying to master the art of standing up in a moving vehicle -- note the death grip on the bar. They problem just get on and latch on to the bar immediately and are afraid to move from there since it might mean temporarily loosening their grip.
BE nice to the tourists. They are our bread and butter in this town and the only thing keeping our economy humming along at the moment. Be nice to them. Frankly, this move back problem is far worse among local riders on muni buses. Its because everyone is waiting for someone else to be the one to move back. The driver needs to stop the bus until people move back.
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