"Could you all move right down inside the carriages, please? Please move right down to let other passengers on." The announcement from the train guard last week was pretty standard. I hear it most mornings as I head into work.
The announcement normally falls on deaf ears, as passengers stare intently at their phones, tablets, books or newspapers. It seems they think that if they stare at them hard enough perhaps everyone will think they are so busy reading that they can’t actually hear.
Or maybe they’re just so engrossed in what they’re reading that they really are oblivious to the world around them. At this particular point, I was reading the local free rag but I had just finished reading a news article in there that ensured I was very much aware of my surroundings.
"Commuters ‘failed to notice’ gunman," the headline read. So the story went, passengers on a train in San Francisco were so engrossed in their phones and tablets that they didn’t even notice a fellow passenger casually pull out a pistol, point it across the carriage and shoot a university student in the back of the head as he got off the train. According to a prosecutor involved in the trial, the commuters on the train were "completely oblivious" to what was happening right beside them.
It’s a horrific story but, fortunately for me, my regular commute is drearily uneventful and I dearly hope it remains that way.
The article did get me thinking, though. I always see people messing about with their phones and tablets, or they’ll be listening to some tunes on their mp3 players.
Sometimes, I think we can all get a bit too engrossed in our tech when we’re travelling – so much so that we don’t pay any attention the people right beside us. A friendly chat on the way to work can brighten up your day.
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Although, to be fair, I do tend to draw the line at striking up a conversation with someone next to me on a long haul flight. Without fail, you always end up sitting next to a weirdo. At least, that’s what everyone I’ve sat next to tells me.
But maybe this week we should all spare a moment to smile at other people during our commutes and perhaps even say ‘hello’. You never know, you might meet your future wife or mistress.
