This Opinion article is part of a Narcity Media series. The views expressed are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect the views of Narcity Media.
If you take the TTC daily, chances are you've got quite a few pet peeves floating around your brain. Regular commuters in Toronto see tons of annoying people doing idiotic things every week, and, well, somebody has to step up and be the parent.
Now, I'm not saying that person is me, but I do know that in order for transit to be a consistently pleasant experience, we need to lay down some ground rules.
We need a sacred list of do's and don'ts created by the people and for the people — I think it should go something like this.
Using priority seating when they don't need to
No judgment if you've done this. I have. It was wrong, but what can I say? Standing sucks, and I am weak. But I also haven't done it in years, and I'm not going back. Why? Because I've seen far too many people who need to take a seat go without one while someone who doesn't qualify for priority seating pretends not to see them.
If there are no regular seats for you to sit in, suck it up and stand.
Boarding with a bag on
No one means to hit other people in the face with their bags as they shuffle onto their respective transit vehicles, but people do.
If you're hopping on a crowded bus, street car or train with a backpack on, shrug that thing off before boarding. You'll avoid making someone eat fabric that way.
Putting their feet on chairs
You don't want to sit next to a stranger? Me neither, but it's called public transit for a reason, so put your feet back on the floor. Nothing grinds my gears worst than having to stand because someone decides they want to lounge out on the TTC.
This problem gets especially rough during the winter time, when everyone's walking around in dirty boots. I don't know about you but, I'm not too keen on walking around with a wet bum all day because someone put their personal comfort over others.
Not using headphones
Nobody wants to listen to your Spotify playlist after a hard work day. You have no idea what your fellow passengers are going through, so be respectful and let them have some semblance of peace.
If you do this regularly and think no one cares or even notices because they don't approach you, you're wrong. If you want to be DJ, great, do it in the clubs and let the rest of us vibe to our own thoughts.
Standing in front of the doors while people exit
This happens to me almost every time I exit the subway at Bloor Station. I end up having to push past a wave of impatient people trying to squeeze into the train while trying to get out.
It sucks and is entirely avoidable. Let everyone get off and then you can board the train.
Letting their kids treat the subway train like a jungle gym
Plenty of my loved ones are parents and teachers, so I have the utmost respect for how hard it is to control your children. However, I've also seen plenty of people just clock out and let their kids run loose on the subway.
This hands-off parenting approach may work fine for you but your child is annoying to everyone else, and that's really not a great way for them to be thought of, especially in the longterm.
You need to do better if you're staring at your phones while your offspring uses the train's safety railing as their monkey bars.
Not cleaning up their trash
I'm only not adding eating on the subway onto this list because although I would never do it, I understand you have to hustle to make rent in this city.
But, if you tend to gulp down your shawarma wraps and then toss your garbage on the ground like a toddler who doesn't know better, then we've got beef. Pun intended.
This article's cover image was used for illustrative purposes only.
Toronto Would Be A Better Place If TTC Commuters Stopped Doing These 8 Annoying Things
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