"Runners" should be punished.

[Aphfaneire]

I dont know if this kind of person exists on all commute lines but its very prevelant on the commuter and only seems to exist souly for drogheda. Its the people that get out of there seats just before arriving at laytown and take up the standing area even before the doors open. They then proceed to not move and laytown passengers have to duck and dive past them. Prior to this the standing room usualy has only just cleared and its safe to sit down or maybe if its your lucky day you can get a seat.
They stand the whole 7 minutes to drogheda from laytown with their car keys in had and expecting someone to have their hand ready to open the door.
Apon arrival the door must open for them no matter what and they run like mad to get jammed in the single door off of the platform or going up the very narrow staircase, regaudless of people comming down it. Once out they continue to run to their cars and get in as quickly as possible and then dash down the hill. Now because of the numbers doing it and the traffic problems in drogheda this cause's instand conjestion, and indegestion for the people who are unfortunet enough to push out of the way and left at the back of the queue by the sheer numbers of runners.


This leaves no solution but to sit and wait for these runners to stop displaying the worst driving in history at illeagal speeds for a carpark just to cause traffic for everyone else.

Why should the patient passengers who have had the exact same day as the runners and who have been standing for the whole journey have to deal with these people who run to cause traffic. Not only this but they are also the savages that ram through the doors to get the seats in the begining, only to get up 10 minutes early to run to their cars.

I officially loath these mannerless examples of irelands commuters

[cubassist 2]

No it happens at Balbriggan too. (Although I've heard it's worse at Drogheda). In fairness to them I'm sure they want to just get home as quickly as possible, but it probably would be easier for them to just stay in their (if they're lucky enough to get one!) seats the extra five mins and stroll to their cars.
Surely an extra 10 mins ain't going to hurt them!

[Mark Hennessy]

The mad dash happens in maynooth too around 1800.

[James Shields]

I see it in Drogheda every day, and I can only conclude that these people have no lives.

In fairness, the queue to get out of the station can be a pain (though slightly better since they started towing cars parked on the access road so traffic can use both lanes), and I have runonce or twice (but only once outside the station building). Nowadays I mostly cycle, avoiding the parking/escaping problems altogether.

I don;t thing the problem is exclusive to Drogheda, but it does seem worse here than at most other stations.

[2Funki4Wheelz]

A few 'runners' at Portarlington too (I've seen them on the 17.55 & 18.00), they literally elbow their way up the stairs, sprint across the bridge and speed out of the car park. (And as there's less of them they stand out more and look really bizarre)

I take my time and when I do get a lift home off a neighbour we're not more than a couple of minutes behind 'runners'. Maybe they're avid Nationwide fans and don't want to miss a minute.

[Mark Gleeson]

Same gig in Newbridge but no footbridge just a dash for the car since its a pain to get out of the car park and the traffic through the town is horrible

I can beat the bulk on foot as far as the post office in the town

[PaulM]

What I hate most are the people in the mornings in Blackrock who stand around the door from Booterstown. Once the trains stops they take their time exiting and then stop to have a think every few steps on the bridge. Meanwhile unhappy Paul is trying to get past them as he is probably late for work.

People! If you aren't going to walk fast. Don't make a point of being first off the train.

[2Funki4Wheelz]

Originally Posted by Paul Mulcahy

People! If you aren't going to walk fast. Don't make a point of being first off the train.

I like what the habit they have in Germany (maybe London too?) where on the escalators people going quick run up in the right and people who are happy to stand around and think about life stand on the left.

[PaulM]

Originally Posted by 2Funki4Wheelz

I like what the habit they have in Germany (maybe London too?) where on the escalators people going quick run up in the right and people who are happy to stand around and think about life stand on the left.

I think this should apply to shopping centres and all miscellaneous escalators. I hate being stuck behind people who don't realise that these can also be used as stairs. Don't get me started on people who get to the very top and then have a think about where they are going.

[alek smart]

Believe it or Not.....I spoke to a Tube Station worker on the Picadilly Line who told me he could accurately judge nationalities by their attitude to the Stand to One Side notices.....
He reckoned the Irish were the most difficult to train.....

[Mark Hennessy]

Originally Posted by alek smart

Believe it or Not.....I spoke to a Tube Station worker on the Picadilly Line who told me he could accurately judge nationalities by their attitude to the Stand to One Side notices.....
He reckoned the Irish were the most difficult to train.....

Agree totally with that, I have witnessed that first hand many times in London.
I believe the reason is due to a lack of public transport etiquette in this country.
The same thing happens when trying to get off a train / bus / luas. Everyone else is just trying to pile on.

[Graham]

Absolutely - could not agree more. This escalator rule should apply across the board in all public spaces. Just because the steps move doesn't mean you are required to stand still - rather they've been designed to make navigating multi-storied public spaces that bit easier. Not an excuse to stand still and have a snooze. Fair enough if you want to - just keep it to one side please.

Older women in Ireland are notoriously bad in this respect. Men probably are too, only they tend not to frequent department stores...
Most certainly a generational thing - over 40 and they simply don't notice the queue piling up.

As for runners - I don't begrudge anyone their extra 5-10 minutes saved by being efficient, as long as they're not ignorant enough to offend or inconvenience others. It's an equally big issue at Dundalk as the other stations, and has gained somewhat notorious status with certain idiots best known to themselves often staging 'walk slow' demonstrations in a line, blocking the fast exiting of passengers on their way up the ramp and out into the car park. What children.

Traffic congestion can be woeful getting out of train station car parks, and after spending an hour and a half in a roaring green-painted Tetra Pack on wheels, it's no wonder people want to get home (at Dundalk anyway). Getting out in the first ten seconds rather than thirty later can mean the difference of sailing out the gate, or a ten minute wait in the car park.
The fact that Dundalk Town Council in their emminent wisdom decided to plonk a pedestrian crossing with no flashing amber and the longest changing sequence conceivable directly outside the main gate has merely added to matters. Is the concept of a zebra crossing just too 80s for Irish local authorities these days? It's been as good as wiped out

Provided people are considerate, good on those who have better things to be doing that spending even more time commuting than they have to.

[Aphfaneire]

Im very surprissed how much attention this would get, but anyway i see some people feel relitivly the same way.

Im not too much of a grumpy person but when ive done the same hours of the rest of the passengers in the basement of a building trying to pay attention to lecturors i feel i need a seat on the train just as bad as anyone else, and when people give up their seats just to cause everyone else more delay, they are allways going to be in my bad books.

Im not going to say they should all be shot, but when your really pissed off, its a very plesant tought to have, however improbable it is.

[Oisin88]

Haven't seen this in a while, but, especially students, tend to get up at about Clondalkin and rush to the front carriage of the train. When it parks in Heuston there is a stampede for the taxis. It seems to have died down since the luas came.

The other side of the coin was that if you were in a genuine hurry (can happen) the older people in the carriage tend to get up first and form a queue to go out the door. Then they all have luggage stowed at the end, which does require a significant amount of fumbling. Then if it is a swing door train they mooch around trying to find out how to open it.

A bit more frustrating than the runners.

Then there is the strategic, try to get to the door nearest the stairs/exit. In Tullamore where there are sometimes only 1-2 taxi waiting, this can be very important if you want to get to work without getting wet!