Readers have pushed back against a recent article suggesting that offering a seat to vulnerable people on public transport can be awkward or insulting. In letters to the editor, they argue that such acts are a matter of basic courtesy and are generally welcomed.
Ian MacKellar of Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire, wrote that he was raised to offer his seat to any woman or elderly person as a matter of principle. Now in need of a walking stick himself, he finds that about 30% of young people instinctively offer him a seat, which he gratefully accepts. The rest, he says, are either thoughtless or selfish.
Judith Heinemann of Milton Keynes described a recent incident on a crowded train from London Euston. She asked a young man to give up his seat for her 73-year-old friend, who had fallen the previous day and was in a wheelchair. The man initially refused, saying it was not a seat for the less able, but eventually complied after much huffing. Heinemann, also 73, ended up sitting on the floor on a plastic bag.
Joan Lewis of St Etienne de Gourgas, France, said she relies on trams to attend concerts and operas, and is always offered a seat by younger passengers. She noted that without such courtesy, many older people would be excluded from society.
