Disgust Over Passenger Refusing To Move Bag From Seat on Crowded Bus

A passenger who was traveling on a bus has been slammed online for taking up two seats by refusing to remove her bag from one of them, even though the bus was crowded.

The passenger took to Reddit to share what went down on the bus journey and why she refused to make space for anyone else.

"I ride the bus because I can't afford a car," the Redditor opened up online.

"A couple days ago I was on a bus that wasn't that busy. Not empty, but there were multiple unused seats and no one had to stand. I had just gone shopping and had heavy bags that were hard to carry," she added.

The Redditor then said that she placed the bags on the seat beside her, thereby taking up two seats.

She explained her reasoning by saying: "Since it wasn't crowded when I got on I didn't see an issue, and like I said the bags were super heavy and hurt to carry so I wanted to set them down."

The woman said later on in her post that the bus became increasingly crowded over time.

"It eventually got pretty crowded to the point where some people had to stand up. I didn't ever move my bag or offer the seat to someone. In my experience most people don't want to sit next to strangers anyway," she wrote.

The Redditor recalled that at the tail-end of her journey, another passenger spoke to her in a passive aggressive tone saying she "could have just moved her bags instead of being inconsiderate and rude."

The woman asked Reddit users to assess the situation.

"I don't understand how I was being rude?" she wrote before ending her post.

What Do The Comments Say?

Since it was shared to the social media platform on May 14 by @Throwaway5848387, the post has been upvoted by 82 percent of the Redditors who engaged with it and commented on more than 5,000 times. The majority of comments slam the OP for being rude.

"Judging by this post, she seems like she'd be the type to roll her eyes and huff if someone did end up asking for the seat," one user wrote.

"I take the train to work and will put my bag next to me until it starts filling up. Always give people the option to sit without having to ask you to move your items," another added.

Newsweek consulted etiquette expert Lisa Mirza Grotts for some general advice on how people can handle their emotions and deal with someone who's being rude or unreasonable towards them.

For Grotts, the best way to rise above such behavior is to meet it with kindness.

"There's difficult and then there's downright rude. These undesirables don't make life easy, but one way to tame them is to kill them with kindness. If the situation is emotionally charged, this will help. Be kind when someone is unreasonable, reasoning will not help," Grotts told Newsweek.

"Just don't let the situation escalate. Never lower yourself to their level. I'd advise taking the high road. Rise above the minutia, and act like a role model,"Grotts said.

Are you and your friend stuck in an argument? Let us know via life@newsweek.com. We can ask experts for advice, and your story could be featured on Newsweek.