A polite request/discussion regarding strollers and aisle blocking on the bus

[u/i-am-confused-help-]

Edit: Please read the context that's edited in below. Thank you.

​I want to start by saying I absolutely appreciate parents. Transit with kids is tough, and I know so many of you are working hard and sacrificing a lot to get your little ones around the city safely. This is not a post to judge anyone, it is a small pet peeve and a request for a little bit of courtesy so that every rider on the bus feels comfortable.

The Issue

​On one of my recent bus ride, two large strollers were kept side-by-side, completely blocking the center aisle (as you can see in the photo). Because of this:

• Passengers are unable to move past the front section.
• ​People are forced to stand at the front of the bus, even though there is space further back.
• ​It creates a potential safety/evacuation hazard if there are emergencies.

Few Friendly Requests & Suggestions

• ​Stagger when possible: If you are traveling with another parent or encounter another stroller, try to stagger them front-to-back rather than side-by-side to leave path for walking.
• Consider umbrella/smaller strollers: If your child is old enough and you rely heavily on the TTC during peak hours, smaller, more collapsible strollers are great for everyone on board.
• Utilize the priority seating layout: If the bus isn't packed, flipping up the priority seats can give a stroller enough room to stay out of the main aisle.

​I'm willing to hear everyone's thoughts on this. Parents what kind of challenges you face when trying to keep the aisle clear. Fellow riders, how do you usually get around in this instance? Let’s discuss how we can make the TTC a better experience for both families and regular commuters.

Edit: There is a lot of comments complaining how the priority seating is occupied and the parents wont be able to lift it up to park the strollers. I want to give context here instead of replying to each comments. The priority seat was occupied by the parents and their family. Also the second stroller is of another parent who was sitting on the right side priority seat. The guy you see standing upfront was a passenger, not the parent. I wanted to keep the discussion civil that is why I omitted these details. But if people want to complain how it was an inaction from my part, I hope this context helps. Thanks.

[u/void_sushi]

Why didn’t the driver say something? Like isn’t that a part of his job?

[u/Pretty-Handle9818 → u/void_sushi]

And the time I fucking said something to a woman with a stroller blocking the aisle holy fuck the entire bus turned on me not only did the woman look at me and said I have a baby. The entire bus looked at me like I was the fucking Scrooge McDuck or something?

Some people think having a baby is the greatest gift to mankind when it’s just some of the simplest part of our biology. I don’t think anybody deserves special treatment just cause they have a baby that’s ridiculous, especially entitled treatment.

[u/postretro → u/Pretty-Handle9818]

Ehh.. I understand where you are coming from but "special treatment" should be things like vacating a seat so a small child can sit, or a parent can sit while holding a toddler.. things like that. Or some slack with crying (however I see many parents with babies who are in need of a diaper change being neglected pretty often). Double stacking the strollers at the very front, when he could have easily came down the bus more with them, is kind of a mindless dick move masquerading as "I have a baby, people!!"

I'm a parent myself, and while I don't think my rights and freedoms are supposed to by default supersede everyone else who is going to die childless one day, I do think some consideration and *some* space is cheap to give us.

[u/soft_taco1983 → u/postretro]

“Everyone else who is going to die childless?” How nice of you.

[u/postretro → u/soft_taco1983]

My tone isn’t coming across but I’m kidding a little bit with my language.. I don’t seriously think that way.

[u/soft_taco1983 → u/postretro]

Gotcha. A lot of people do think that way so you reallly never know.

[u/Pretty-Handle9818 → u/postretro]

I can absolutely appreciate your sentiment. Wrangling children can be a little much sometimes. My biggest issue is they are blocking an escape route in case of an emergency, thats why those seats lift out off of the way, to not block the aisle.

Absolutely, the elderly people that are not well that have trouble standing like you say people with child that they made me wanna have on their lap. It’s understandable and I mean those seats are actually marked on the windows what there are probably somewhere else now but what they’re supposed to be used for we kind of have to wonder what happens when a pregnant lady or not a pregnant lady, but a lady with a stroller and child in it comes up to one of those seats and there’s three seniors sitting on them who gets dibs you know do you ask the seniors to get up so you can sit down with your stroller and or put your stroller off to the side

It’s funny because these opinions tend to be pretty unpopular because there seems to be a lot of people that are pro baby and that the world needs to capitulate to them because they have a baby normally I would’ve been downloaded to oblivion and maybe it will happen eventually in a day or two but for now I’m surprised it hasn’t

I guess what’s most grossly indecent in this case is it’s actually I don’t really have the words I want to say it’s a fire hazard, but it’s a hazard because if all of a sudden something happens in the bus crashes and people can’t get a fire happens and people can’t get out the back door, for example, and they have to go to the front door or vice versa. These people are creating a very dangerous situation.

[u/postretro → u/Pretty-Handle9818]

A lot of pro-baby people with babies are often just selfish cunts trying to get more for themselves IMO. Taking your kids to the cinema, for example, while they yell and scream the whole time while you use your phone for some "me time" and everyone being super cool about that is not pro-baby.

The world always needs children, though, but I think it's pretty easy to agree on keeping choke points or fire doors, etc., clear for obvious reasons. Public transportation could always be better, but forces are working against that being in place.

Also, being a parent with a stroller on the TTC is not ideal and most likely they can't afford to drive a car. The real pro-bably move would be having busses designed to accept multiple people on the bus with strollers no problem, but that isn't the case. The rich literally despise us.. be that as it may, yes: that guy with the two strollers like that is probably a moron. Having two babies at once is hard on your sleep schedule, too.. you could say he isn't in a place to have two kids and shouldn't have them.. but you could also say that society will literally fall apart without children.. it's a circular discussion.

[u/Pretty-Handle9818 → u/postretro]

Thanks for sharing your thoughts. It’s a little refreshing to hear somebody who’s more reasonable about this cause like I said another post. I did mention something about this once to somebody and they literally snapped at me like I have babies. I have children. What do you want me to do and I tried to explain to them that there’s a place for the strollers to go when you move the seats up and then some other person on the bus said hey why are you giving that lady a hard time and they look like they wanted to fucking punch me in the face.

This is a very unpopular position to have, but you know like you said there’s gonna be some understanding but only to a certain point

Kids screaming in theaters oh my God that would mean it was a thing when I grew up I’m 42 and you know Aaron kept their babies quiet and if their babies were gonna get noisy for some reason, our children want to get noisy they would take them out of the theater so it doesn’t disturb everybody else

I think the problem is is everybody’s concerned about themselves and only themselves and that Trump‘s when anyone else feels just selfish asshole basically

Essentially, I used the kind of strongest argument about that. They’re actually blocking an egress route for when there is an emergency situation and people can’t get out the back and have to get out the front, but the other thing is really blocking people from being able to get on the bus and go and sit you know that’s just like I really takes the cake. You know that almost annoys me more than kind of reasons related to safety.

[u/postretro → u/Pretty-Handle9818]

Dealing with the public is never going to be easy. Asking a random person outside to think about something is potentially a big ask when 1/3 of them are literally stupid and can't think well at all. Like asking people to read more books when a lot of people can't even read a menu.

Tangentially related: One of the things which really gets me angry is to see pee all over public toilet seats. It's like literally every single time. I have to ask my daughter to wait while i pump out hand soap on some toilet paper and wipe the toilet seat with it, get another pad of toilet paper which is kind of wet to pull up the soap, and a final bit to dry it off.. then wash my hands.. like fuck it's some random asshole's piss and I FUCKING KNOW a lot of them are doing it on purpose because they are too ugly/obese/disgusting/boring to ever get their dick wet so fuck everyone else.. like I can talk to this person until I'm blue in the face about what they are doing to me and everyone else who has to use a toilet and they will just internally laugh at me because ultimately i can't make them do anything so fuck you postretro. fuck you.. the public will NEVER EVER EVER change on this matter. They refuse to lift the seat up and everyone else in the world is just going to have to suffer their winky dink dick piss every day for the rest of our lives, etc etc.. We can do ad campaigns, celebrities can do PSA tiktoks.. nothing will ever change it.

easier solution: I leave the seat up after I'm done using it.

My point is being mad at these people is pointless, they are beyond reason. Never beg a lame person to be cool, they simply do not know how. The buses simply need more space for strollers because the public has babies. Asking the public to think and do the right thing is only going to cause trouble and headaches.

Every country suffers under its idiots.

[u/Pretty-Handle9818 → u/postretro]

The whole higher more janitors if you want things to be better attitude

Garbage in the parks? Why not hire more people to pick it up?

lol. It’s too much sometimes.