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Yesterday I had occasion to take a Capitol Corridor train from Suisun/Fairfield to Emeryville. Upon boarding I saw that every passenger in the car occupied two seats, one for himself and one for bags and coats.
None would move their stuff so I could sit down. So I perched on an armrest until the conductor came along to take my tickets. "Go to Car One or Two," he said. "Seats open there." No move to ask a passenger to yield the seat next to him.
I'm from Chicago, and Metra riders will almost always apologize and clear their gear so a standee can sit. A conductor otherwise will make them do so.
Do Californians have such an overweening sense of entitlement that they assume one ticket buys two seats? And do Amtrak California conductors think the easiest course is simply to ignore that?
Posts: 2236 | From: Evanston, Ill. and Ontonagon, Mich. | Registered: Feb 2007
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Maybe I'm an overweenie. Or more properly, an underweenie.
Posts: 2236 | From: Evanston, Ill. and Ontonagon, Mich. | Registered: Feb 2007
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If the train has plenty of seats like in your case the crew will let the passengers take up two seats. If the train is becoming too crowded then they will make ann announcement of one seat, one passenger then will walk the train enforcing it if other passengers don't comply. It is like this on the San Joaquin and Surfliner trains as well.
Posts: 711 | From: Santa Ana | Registered: May 2003
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It is very common for these trains to have a couple of middling full cars and one or more near empty. Not a frequent enough user to try to understand why. The conductor may have though he was doing you a favor by directing you to a lightly loaded car.
As Chris says, if the train is going to be relatively full, the crew will announce that you do not take up more than one seat. If not, they seem to work on the assumption that you, as the new passenger getting on, would rather go to a car where he can occupy a double if you want to than have to sit next to someone else.
The Capital Corridor trains passengers are primary business people during the weekdays. A lot of the passengers will be pulling out laptops and working during the trip.
Posts: 2808 | From: Olive Branch MS | Registered: Nov 2002
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In short, Henry, the answer is yes----on the west coast, we are "seat hogs". I always make room for someone because that's the way I was raised. But I've ridden the east coast commuters, including Metra, and there is DEFINITELY a difference in attitude--there is no doubt about it.
Posts: 2355 | From: Pleasanton, CA | Registered: Apr 2007
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quote:Do Californians have such an overweening sense of entitlement that they assume one ticket buys two seats?
AIUT, they have such a sense in general. This is the kind of state where one was once able to gamble using welfare cash.
There's really no excuse for what happened. Pacific Surfliners have overhead racks with enough room to stow personal belongings that would normally fit on a seat (hence the name; it's not a coffee table nor a desk).
quote:Originally posted by Henry Kisor: Do Californians have such an overweening sense of entitlement that they . . .
The answer is yes, and you can finish the sentence with almost anything you can think of.
And . . they see no reason they should have to pay for it either. Whenever I quit working here, unless something changes the only thing the state will see of me is my back dissapearing in the distance.
Posts: 2808 | From: Olive Branch MS | Registered: Nov 2002
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