This Is Why Everyone on BART Hates You

SF Weekly ^ | Wed., Apr. 17 2013 | Erin Sherbert

[nickcarraway]

You know what's worse than late BART trains and increasing transit fares? The douchebags riding those trains. Unfortunately, there's nothing to be done about those passengers who shamelessly clip their nails, pass gas, and pick their nose. And even if you aren't one of those idiots who gives themselves a pedicure en route to Powell Street, everyone on BART hates you anyway, and this is why:

You pee/poop on our seats:

In case your mother hadn't told you, BART is not your personal potty, which means shitting and pissing on the escalators, floors, seats, and ticket machines is a no-no. If you can't hold it, then poop in your own pants, that's what your underwear is for.

You take up two seats with your crap while the rest of us stand:

Look, I don't want to sit next to you any more than you want to sit next to me, but I also don't want to stand. So move your Trader Joe's bags and your exercise ball or whatever the hell it is you feel entitled to bring on the train and give me that seat. And stop giving me dirty looks.

You talk too much:

Hang up the damn phone and stop yammering on about your stupid boss and organic groceries. Nobody cares and nobody on BART wants to hear your one-sided conversation, especially with that voice. That's what texting is for. Unless of course you are having a raging argument with your partner; then feel free to keep sharing that entertainment with us -- it's not like I can concentrate on my book now.

You cut in line while the rest of us wait like adults for a train: Do you see that line of people queued up by the tracks? Those people are waiting for the next train just like you are, except they've done the BART equivalent of taking a number. Everyone can see you lingering on the sidelines acting like you aren't waiting for the next train, and when the train arrives, everyone can also see you hop the line and be the first to grab whatever seats remain. But here's the deal: You didn't work any harder that day than the rest of us, and you sure as hell don't want to get home any faster. So get at the back of the line where you belong.

Thanks for sharing

After you cut in line, you refuse to make space for everyone else: What the hell is wrong with you? You are not entitled to your own cubicle on BART. Move back, and then keep moving so the rest of us who didn't cut in line can get on the train we've been standing around waiting for. Nobody is asking you to be all Emily Post about it, just make room for the herd.

You smell like ass:

Everyone complains about how disgusting BART is, but have you ever considered that it's not BART, it's you. Maybe you don't know it, or, worse, maybe you just don't care, but the rest of us can smell you and we do care as long as we're being packed inside that train where breathable space is as plentiful as BART seats during rush hour.

[patriot08]

Anyone ever watch ‘hardcore pawn’? Amazing how those animal customers act. Tru channel..tuedays 8 pm

[Political Junkie Too]

For a few bucks a day, it's the safest indoor warm seating a homeless person can find. And the stations have bathrooms, too.

Pay your fare for the minimum distance, and then ride back and forth in air-conditioned comfort until they kick you out.

-PJ

[xp38]

The problem with public transportation is that it is public.

[broken_clock]

Another One Rides The Bus?

http://m.youtube.com/#/watch?v=tZkouut-9RQ&desktop_uri=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DtZkouut-9RQ

[steve86]

I rode the city trains and tram for a day in Portland, OR., last summer and surprisingly did not see one bad or weird thing. Just lucky, I guess.

[Mr. Jeeves]

Singapore MRT is pretty nice - of course, if they had the types of passengers BART has, they would never have time to cane everybody who deserves it. :)

[Hillarys Gate Cult]

Back in the 80s I heard that one cent of all California sales tax goes to run the BART and now the LA Metro. So people who never will visit either city have to pay for it.

Public transportation and the subway in SF are called the BART. If in the future the Fresno Area ever needs one, what will they call it?

[Revolting cat!]

FATRO?

[thecodont]

The mass transit in Atlanta, what little there is, is amazingly safe and clean. It is run by people who actually appreciate the gift from the Feds, and they rule it with an iron hand - zero tolerance for ANY crap. No eating. No drinking. No annoying. And plenty of undercover who will arrest without warning and they mean it. I’ve seen it myself more than once.

Wish they had that kind of order on BART. It's heartbreaking to see the pictures from 1972, when it first opened (check the archive on SFGate.com, Peter Hartlaub's "Let's Go to the Morgue") and the seats were clean and everyone was well-dressed (those '70s fashions!) and courteous.

Now you can count on finding:
* Eating and drinking (I don't mean breath mints/gum and water, but food smells, food wrappers, food refuse on the seats and floor)
* Feet ON the seats (even with shoes on!) as if it were their living-room couch
* Use of the overhead SRO grab bars as gymnastics equipment
* Panhandlers and juvenile candy salesmen who pass through the cars soliciting donations
* Gang members who go as a group from one car to another, glaring at all the passengers

Etc.

[Revolting cat!]

everyone was well-dressed (those '70s fashions!)

Oh yes, I remember!

[RegulatorCountry]

FAST. Just substitute Speedy for Rapid. Know they really wanted it to be Rapid, though, and laugh. Leftist bureaucrats do love their dorky acronyms that spell words, it’s a tell of sorts, much like a hyphenated surname. Don’t trust any politician, government official or organization associated with either one. If there are exceptions to this I’ve not come across them.

[CounterCounterCulture]

I know, right? :-)

[Revolting cat!]

FAUL - Fresno Area Underground Line.

[ProtectOurFreedom]

We’re going to have the joy of BART in San Jose real soon. The $2.3 billion, 10-mile construction project from Warm Springs in South Fremont to Berryessa Road in San Jose is underway. Just look what we have to look forward to.

For years, I thought a BART extension to San Jose from San Francisco would run down the Peninsula. The current route is like flying from San Fran to LA via Denver and Phoenix. It’ll take you the better part of a day to get to San Fran from SJ on BART. What a colossal waste of money. But nowhere near as wasteful as the Light Rail extension to Los Gatos which will carry on average 10 passengers. Or the $1.6B tunnel “Central Subway” tunnel project that runs all of 1.7 miles in San Fran.

You’d think California was running a surplus and the population was growing with all these transit projects underway.

[Yardstick]

I used the mass transit in Denmark and was impressed with how clean and orderly it was. Maybe it can work when everyone is named Peter Petersen or Jorgen Jorgensen.

[Amberdawn]

Lol! It sounds like a fart as it is!

[stylin19a]

You pee/poop on our seats: ...
You take up two seats with your crap while the rest of us stand:

seems standing is the better option ?

[Hillarys Gate Cult]

Would also be more fun if budget cuts ever hit it. Imagine the headlines.

[La Lydia]

Yes, DC is pretty good unless someone flies a large airplane into the Pentagon. UNLESS THE BLUE LINE GOES DOWN DURING THE SUMMER, in which case the Yellow line becomes Lord of the Flies. And, unless you want to go anywhere east of Capitol South on the Blue/Orange line without being surrounded by felons. And, unless you have injured your ankle and are in the vicinity of Foggy Bottom/GWU. I could go on but you get the picture.

[Caipirabob]

Wow, thanks for the perspective. Good to know we’ve got competition for “gross” in the USA - lol!