Uneasy Rhetoric

Dear Sacramento light rail riders:

You are a spoiled bunch. When RT runs four-car trains at rush hour, there is usually plenty of space. You might have to stand, but you won’t have to brush against another human. Well, you might if you’re sitting down but hey, at least you’re sitting.

But when RT runs three or God forbid, two-car trains like they did today, common sense flies out the window. Even with empty seats and empty aisles, the mob insists on filling the stairwells first. That makes no sense.

Here, I offer you a few words of advice I learned riding light rail in Portland:

1. If there is an available seat, sit down. It won’t kill you to sit next to the state worker reading People Magazine. It won’t even kill you to sit next to the guy who wants to talk nonstop about nothing.

2. The pivot points in the middle of each car can hold more than two people. Feel free to stand there. Heck, they can hold more than four people.

3. If the seats and the pivot point is full, the aisles should fill next. Really, the aisles. You know, the parts away from the doors.

4. If everywhere else is full, then, and only then, you can stand in the space in front of the doors or on the steps, but not before everyone else has tried to make room for you. People standing on stairs make it very difficult to get on and off the train in a timely manner. Furthermore, you often prevent the doors from closing, causing the operator to get cranky and the train to be late.

Finally, remember that a car is not “full” when all the seats are full. That’s why there are bars and straps to hold on to when you have to stand.