COMMUTERS have revealed their biggest public transport bugbears, including ‘man-spreaders’, feet on the seats, and smelly food eaters.
A poll of 1,000 adults who use buses, trains, trams, the tube, or boats to get to their place of employment found 50 per cent consider their commute to be the worst part of their day.
Other gripes include co-travellers hogging seats with their bags, fellow commuters having graphic conversations very loudly, and having to stand under someone’s armpits.
Although 48 per cent admit they have been guilty of committing such faux pas themselves.
The research was commissioned by Virgin Trains Ticketing, a booking platform which rewards passengers with points which can be exchanged for ‘everyday treats’, flights, and experiences.
Director Mark Plowright said: “Commuting is a necessity for many working adults, and as the research shows it's often the source of much frustration.
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“But it shouldn’t be such a nightmare – indeed travellers are likely to have lots of things they enjoy about their journey, it’s just that certain occurrences can ruin what should be a time to relax."
The study also found the typical public transport commute is 41 minutes long – and on average 36 per cent of it is spent feeling irritated.
This works out to be just under half an hour in total every day – there and back – or two and a half hours a working week.
This partly might explain why 61 per cent think commuters should be offered more incentives to use public transport.
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Although 41 per cent are not aware some train operators run loyalty point reward schemes.
This finding emerged at a time when 67 per cent said they’re relying on such schemes to help counteract the costs of everyday living as much as possible.
Further to this, the study carried out through OnePoll found 26 per cent intend to look for cheaper ways to get to work over the coming months.
And 21 per cent of those polled intend to commute to work more in the coming months – to save costs on heating and electricity at home.
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Mark Plowright added: “It’s understandable there’s a desire for commuters to be more incentives to use public transport.
“For one thing they spend a lot of time and money on these ways of getting to and from work – we’re hoping we can make days a little brighter with Virgin Trains Ticketing and a heap of points for every journey booked.”
TOP 10 COMMUTER BUGBEARS
1. People talking loudly on their phone on public transport
2. Aggressive people
3. People refusing to give up their seat for others more needy (e.g. older passengers, pregnant women, people with disabilities, or those with young children)
4. Leaving rubbish on the train tables/ bus floors/ seats
5. Very delayed trains, buses or trains
6. People who push in when queuing to get on public transport
7. No air conditioning or ventilation on public transport during the summer
8. Noisy children
9. "Manspreaders" – men who insist on taking up room by spreading their legs on public transport
10. People who don’t wait for you to get off the Tube, train or bus first before barging on
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