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Friday fun poll: have you given up your seat in the past month?

Friday fun poll: have you given up your seat in the past month?

(Looking for the surprise post advertised in the February print Buzzer? Please click here — it’s about I Love Transit Week and our first live meetup to be held next week!)

So, in last Friday’s poll, I asked which direction you liked to face when sitting on the SkyTrain.

I thought it would be an even split between each direction, but “facing forward” swept most of the votes. Out of 119 votes, 93 preferred facing forward (78%), 14 liked facing sideways (12%) and 12 liked facing backward (10%).

I’m guessing that facing forward was most popular because people generally like facing the direction they’re travelling in. In the comments, exceptions were explained again. Bill Kinkaid offered his strategy for boarding, if he’s not travelling too far:

My commuting trip is just two stops, from one station with a centre platform to another with a centre platform, and a station with side platforms in between. So for only two stops, I try to be the last one to get on and just stand by the door!

Sideways seating also had its proponents and detractors: :-| and Mike liked the sideways benches for leg room, plus not having to get up for other people to exit the car, but Dan hated the lack of elbow room, and Bill Kinkaid said “I hate sitting sideways on any form of transportation.”

And I asked about how people liked the captain’s chair on the Mark II trains — turns out there is quite a bit of affection for that seat, although most leave it for the kids. Cow also mentioned that it was good for those new to the region:

I really like the captain’s chair, honestly. When I first moved to the region, I sat in it a few times and just rode the train around; it’s an amazingly good way to get the lay of the land in the Lower Mainland. Now that I’ve seen both routes the whole way, I’ll leave it for others, unless the train’s totally empty.

———

So, for this week, here’s a new poll:

Feel free to be honest, as there’s no judgment here: I’m just wondering whether people do find themselves ever giving up their seats to other passengers. If you do, who do you generally offer your seat to? If you don’t, why do you think that is?

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