Never took the bus, hated them. I'd rather walk, whatever the weather or time. Night buses are the worst, like a mobile drunk tank with added bonus of intimidation from the local toughs.

Anyways, rail:
- people who had highly spiced dinner and are sweating it out at 6am the next day, esp if you're hung over;
- people and their fucking backpacks. Standing, sitting, I don't care. Put it on the floor by your feet you Eurotrash shit
- manspreaders. I love to sit next to them and bug the shit out of them by not giving ground
- Handbags are for carrying personal shit, not for ensuring you have a little more space on a shared seat
- bikes on trains at peak time. At least have the balls to be embarassed by it and don't be a dick by saying it's your right
- people standing and eating on a packed train
- people listening to buds, but still fucking singing (usually badly, and usually in the style of Mariah Carey)
- people listening to music, without buds. The carriage really wants to hear your sick beats. Honest.
- the courting couple. Whilst love may be in the air for you two, we don't need to be reminded of the youthful enthusiasm of kissing and cuddling in our drab and dull lives. If you want that kind of shit, go dogging. Or better yet, try the last seats in the last carriage on the circle line at about 10-10:30 (too late for office folk, too early for pub kicking out - wink, wink). Mind the gap etc.

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Swim. Overbike. Walk.

The Courting Couple... oh the traumatic memory that just dug up! Reminds me of being trapped on the train standing next to a young couple for 20 minutes as they loudly sucked face and whispered sweet nothings. The girl's hairdo was brushing on my arm, she was oblivious. It took everything in my power to not lean over and whisper to them a fair warning that they will hurt each other's feelings immeasurably in a few months anyway, and could they knock it the hell off until I reach my stop??

Me too. I'll be the one with the wife and three teenage girls.

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They constantly try to escape from the darkness outside and within
Dreaming of systems so perfect that no one will need to be good T.S. Eliot

Back when I was in school I took a late night train home in Toronto. Only me and another guy in the car. Sitting across from me he lights up a cigarette. Just a little scrawny guy so I challenge him on it pointing out it is not allowed. He says can't you cut a guy a break I just got out of the pen. So just before my stop I ask what he was in for. He says, "I killed my father" just before the doors open for my stop. I get out and leave.

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They constantly try to escape from the darkness outside and within
Dreaming of systems so perfect that no one will need to be good T.S. Eliot

Ill be the one with a 9 year old boy and his mom.

If you decide to go for a run, (shut up blep!) I highly recommend going to the run center and heading out for a central park run from there. Ive done it before and will be again.

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who's smarter than you're? i'm!

I gave up on the bus because of the random times they were turning up, the timetable was just for comic effect i believe. i started running from the C train to my home which was quicker and more reliable. The C train on the other hand, what a shit show. it would be nice if they at least restricted it to paying customers. I used to stand at one end of the carriage with my ipod on and dare anyone to speak to me, it usually worked.

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Spend some time at Grand Central and you will definitely have some stories.

In college I used to take the bus from NYC to Atlantic City because it was the cheapest way to get to south jersey. I think the ticket at the time was $20 and you got $10 in quarters when you got to AC. Also used to bus or train back to Phili from NYC. The denziens on the bus to AC were the best or worst depending on how you look at it. Back then I thought it was funny. I couldn't do it today.

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"I think I've cracked the code. double letters are cheaters except for perfect squares (a, d, i, p and y). So Leddy isn't a cheater... "

My parents got divorced when I was in 3rd grade. Sister was 2yrs younger. For years afterwards, every other weekend, we either took a 4hr bus or train ride from one parent's house to the other. The parents didn't even hang around to see that we got on the bus or train ok. Just bought our ticket, handed them to us, and they drove away. Was no big deal all.

Imagine today someone putting a 3rd and 1st grade kid on a train or a bus for a 4hr ride. You'd be arrested.

I have the very strong impression that a lot more was expected from little kids, 4-5 decades ago, then today. We were used to a lot more autonomy. Mrs RG doesn't agree tho.

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Books @ Amazon
"If only he had used his genius for niceness, instead of Evil." M. Smart

I commute by train probably 33% of the time. I don't have many stories.

1. Unruly passenger. Dude got on in the city and was fine for a while. Somewhere in the suburbs he got on his phone. He was the stereotype for racist Boston sports fan. Every other word was fuck. Delayed at a station for 30 minutes as the local PD came by and took him away.
2. Just in general - the line I take is the only one that stops at Yawkey. Opening day is the worst, my commute usually coincides with when the Sox game ends at Fenway. Tons of loud fans and drunks.

Homeless and mentally ill people don't take the heavy rail commuter trains, especially at 5 in the morning. Not any great stories...

The Metrolink going into Los Angeles is relatively nice. Decent seats, where you can usually get by without someone sitting next to you, and each train as a quite car where talking on a cell phone is prohibited.

Sounds like public transport heaven especially the quite car, it might almost make me go back to it.

Metrolink is nice to ride especially since the cost is a deterrent for the lowlifes of Southern California. I enjoy using public transportation because driving is not my favorite thing to do. Taking the bus and train always brings a host of bottom feeders on the phone yelling to someone about having a lack of money or how much weed was smokes the day before. The loud crap music boarding from the government phones is a must. No ride is complete without an assclown leaving behind his junk food remains as if he was asked to do so.
Europe has its share of bad riders but most are drunk and either barf all over the floors or cannot seem to stay awake long enough to get off at the right stop.
Asia has a variety of rudeness stemming from people p!anted into their phones. Most trains have areas for handicap, pregnant, seniors and women with children. The young folks get in the carriage faced down, park it in one of the listed seats and won't look up long enough to offer their seats or to even check the stops.
Here in Korea I have seen a few people do it but nearly all women seats are left empty.

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DISH is how we do it.

I survived for several decades in Vancouver without a car, but it became a pain when my parents move to the outer burbs. The only way to get the 100km from my house to theirs was to rent a car or take Greyhound, the latter was my usual pick due to cost. I got pretty good at avoiding conversation and strategically having coughing fits when the bus was loading so folks wouldn't want to sit next to me.

On one trip I got stuck at the very back of bus next to an older lady. Before I could pop my earbuds in she started talking to me. Crap! Lucky for me she turned out to be super interesting, she lived in the Northwest Territories and had had a really neat life. She was an odd denizen, but worth speaking to.

I finally caved and got a car, so my trips to my parents are far less interesting.

Thanks for the run centre tip. Usually I stay in manhattan but this time staying in queens so that will be helpful

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They constantly try to escape from the darkness outside and within
Dreaming of systems so perfect that no one will need to be good T.S. Eliot

At least sweat is somewhat uncontrollable, too much scent is just rude. A couple of my coworkers wear so much perfume or cologne the elevator is unbearable after they've been in it. So much for our scent-free workplace.

Back in the day (1980's), Ms Tostig and I used public transport all the time in Europe (mainly England, Germany, and France). Thought it was great not having to drive to get somewhere, but I think everyone there was a smoker. You couldn't get away from people smoking and/or the smell of left over cigarettes.

We did have one "fun" experience on a Munich trolley. We were riding it one night and some teenagers got on at a stop, but just as the doors were closing they all jumped off, the doors closed, and the trolley started moving. Next thing, the German passengers were yelling something like, "Der stink bomb!" The kids had dropped a hydrogen sulfide (rotten egg smell) bomb on the floor as they left, and we were all trapped inside the trolley with no way to get out. Sort of a fun time!

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"Human existence is based upon two pillars: Compassion and knowledge. Compassion without knowledge is ineffective; Knowledge without compassion is inhuman." Victor Weisskopf.

Of course, some of the denizens are the drivers themselves. Request a stop shortly before the marked bus stop, the driver slows, then proceeds for 2 more blocks. "Um, hey I requested a stop 2 blocks ago!" "Oh well I asked if it was that one and no one said anything so I kept going." I prefer to stay seated as long as possible to avoid the inevitable scramble for an anchor against the heavy braking most drivers employ, but I guess I need to risk it so it's obvious to the driver that yes indeed I really, really, want to disembark.