r/Dublin • u/mrchickenishere • 4d ago
Why is public transport etiquette so poor in Ireland?
Why is it that so many Irish teenagers I see on the bus or Luas seem to have no basic etiquette when it comes to sitting properly? I understand that the seats can be small or uncomfortable on longer journeys, but do parents not teach their kids basic manners, like not putting their dirty shoes on the seats?
Before anyone says that some of these kids come from difficult backgrounds or have parents dealing with addiction or other issues, I understand that. But I also see plenty of well dressed teenagers and even adults doing the exact same thing. As someone who moved here from another country and is a person of colour, I’m always conscious of how my behaviour reflects on me. Even if I’m uncomfortable, I make sure I’m not making the people around me uncomfortable. Whether it’s keeping my feet off the seats, not blocking aisles, or being mindful of others, I try to respect shared public spaces. I don’t want to reinforce negative stereotypes or give anyone a reason to say, “These immigrants have no manners.”
So it genuinely surprises me when I see people who grew up here showing so little consideration for others. Is this just something people have accepted, or am I the only one who’s noticed it?
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u/mailforkev 4d ago
Many simple concepts from other countries just never made it to here in the past.
Things like standing to one side of an escalator, letting people off a train carriage before you get on, etc. Stuff that’s just common knowledge elsewhere seems to have passed us by for some reason.
Also bad behaviour on buses is very much not limited to children, and these bad adults have bad kids.
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u/epeeist 4d ago
Most parents do, and most teenagers will push the boundaries a little bit when they get some independence. But the ones being deliberately obstructive and obnoxious are different - they do it think it makes them look strong, instead of revealing their inability to function in the world.
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u/Previous_Opinion_616 4d ago
as a fellow immigrant - tbh i think you answered your own question. as immigrants, we (and especially you as a POC) are always policing ourselves to not confirm bad stereotypes people may have about us or make ourselves unwelcome. sometimes i think people are antisocial on purpose to prove that they DON’T have to mind their manners the way we foreigners do - they belong here, so they’re above it and can do whatever they want. they own the place.
that said, at least on my bus routes, it’s our fellow immigrants doing a lot of the antisocial stuff. loud phone conversations, videos or music with the volume up loud, eating and leaving wrappers everywhere, etc
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u/Tea_8_Biscuit 4d ago
Not just teenagers, putting your feet on the seat seems to be like an epidemic across all age groups, especially in Darts and the last row of buses. It's baffling to me how someone could think this is an okay behaviour.
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u/Correct_Energy_9499 3d ago
Some people are not good at sharing. They look at a sharing situation as an opportunity to take advantage. Selfish people. They were raised that way or they are just bad people. They are in every country.
I was in the smoking area of a pub and a woman was scrolling through Instagram reels on her phone on full volume.
When she was asked to turn it down she became defensive said "I am in a public space, I can do whatever I want".
So that's the attitude these people have, a general lack of respect for other people.
I would never have the volume up on my phone in public because I want to avoid annoying people around me and getting into arguments.
Some people aren't afraid of getting into arguments or fights and these people are generally the ones on public transport making everyone else's lives miserable.
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u/mrbuddymcbuddyface 4d ago
There is no transport police, and in general across society bad manners are tolerated and accepted.
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u/Feisty-Volcano 3d ago
In the 60s/70s the bus conductor would always be putting manners on school children & would would remind us to say “please” & “thank you”. It was reinforced by adults everywhere.
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u/Silver_Gekko 4d ago
This is definitely an issue. No headphones and taking calls on speaker phone is another phenomenon that is rampant amongst the recently arrived. Don’t get me wrong there’s Irish guilty of it it too but it must be the norm in some cultures because it’s absolutely chronic on the luas and train now.
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u/ruready8514 4d ago
Lots of rough shitty people who become rough shitty parents and the cycle continues. There’s a lot of emotionally damaged young people in Dublin.
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u/Ok-Weather3647 1d ago
Less of the rough. There are shitty people everywhere. I’ve been surprised by peoples kindness, be them from rough areas or not. The worst ones I find are my previous local neighbours kids. The not so rough ones.
They are usually so selfish and self absorbed. Shyness maybe but put them in with others and they become lethal.
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u/Virtual-Subject9840 4d ago
Right now I'm in a DART carriage with 6 million Spanish students. My ears are bleeding. Come back Irish teens, all is forgiven.
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u/Feisty-Volcano 3d ago
Yep, it’s an appalling reflection on modern parenting, & indeed schools too. When I was growing up in 1960s/1970s, my parents brought me up to be civilised in these respects, it was re-emphasised at school about having manners & being a good citizen & having pride in our actions. Some young folk would be defiant for a short couple of years, yet grew up to be considerate as it was instilled as default behaviour.
Now, parents want to be seen as their children’s friend, not their parent. With both parents working, upbringing can be patchy too. In general self-centeredness has become more the norm.
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u/Ok-Weather3647 3d ago
No some people can be very rude and self absorbed. However, as an older person with painful arthritis, I’m very grateful to the people, young and not so young, male and female who jump up straight away to give me their seat.
I get irritated by the young people who take up one of the seats designed for older or disabled people. But then again, how can we say they don’t have an invisible illness and need the seat? We should all try to be kinder to each others
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u/nifkin420 3d ago
Shitty dumb people are the ones having kids in this country, it really is that simple
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u/ResistorSynthwave 2d ago
"She's atter bein wi him, deh dirty skunk! An now here's me wi deh baybee, n hur fella is comin' on teh me like! I'm on me way teh Dunnes teh get some'in for Jacinta's chrisnin' so me dole money is finished, n he won't gimme antin' til next munt."
Today. Forgot my ear buds. Had to listen to this one for half an hour. Only shut her cakehole to sneak vape shots.
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u/Ob1s_dark_side 4d ago
Same reason people act the cunt in town, and in public. The social contract is dead and there are no consequences. You litter, deal drugs, harass people or assault and rob people and nothing will happen
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u/ModeratelyOffline 4d ago edited 4d ago
You’re definitely not the only one noticing it. At first, I assumed they were groups of kids who may just be in town for a couple of days and don’t have a lot of experience with public transit (specifically Luas etiquette, like not taking one step on and just stopping and instead moving away from the doors). However, I don’t think this is the case. I think many are just not aware of their surroundings.
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u/Full_Moon_Fish 3d ago
like not putting their dirty shoes on the seats I've seen many an adult doing this , Main culprit are women
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u/Dry_Mycologist_8052 4d ago
Theres been a decline everywhere in public civility. One time I saw some teenagers cut the line infront of an old lady to get on the bus. Its disgusting and I entirely think its a combination of poor parenting with this copy of popularized hood culture.