Someone named "Joey Boots" (if that is your real name) has posted a video on YouTube showing an encounter with a "selfish and inconsiderate bitch" (his words). He explains that he dislocated his knee last week and has a cane and knee brace, which is keeping his leg outstretched. Yesterday morning our hobbling protagonist "got on the 4 train in the Bronx... the seats in the corners have signs above them saying that is seating for disabled/handicapped passengers. So I asked this lady if I could have the seat as I had to stretch my leg out and didn't want others stepping on it or it being in the way of others and she loudly refuses saying I should sit somewhere else... I point out the sign to her and she just starts cussing and refusing to move." more ›

No matter how deserted your subway train may be, you can't still afford to get comfortable by putting your feet up: It seems that transit police have not eased up on their late night ticket blitz against any rider occupying more than one seat. Last year saw a 17% spike in tickets for that crime, and it looks like the trend continues in 2010. One of the more recent violators is a 17-year-old Stuyvesant HS student who got a $50 ticket two weeks ago on his way home from a birthday party. It was 2 a.m., and there were four people other in the subway car when he dared rest his feet on the edge of an empty seat. more ›

"It's a double whammy," Gene Russianoff, staff lawyer for the Straphangers Campaign, told Gothamist. "You'll have to wait longer for a train, and you'll have a reduced chance of finding a seat." According to MTA documents [PDF], instead of attempting to accommodate 100 percent of off-peak passengers with seats, the agency will aim to fill the cars with 125 percent of the "seated load." Commuters can expect more crowded trains during all off-peak hours on the 7 and L lines, midday and evenings on the 1 and A lines, and Sundays on the J and M lines. And the number of seat-less commuters is actually expected to exceed the proposed maximum of 18 standing passengers on F and Q lines at certain times on Saturdays, and on 1 and N trains at certain times on Saturdays and Sundays. more ›

There was a 17% spike last year in the number of summonses issued to subway riders who occupy more than one seat. Between January and November 2009, transit police issued 8,700 tickets to commuters who exceeded their legally mandated one seat allotment, either through reclining or foot-propping or bag-resting. That's 1,300 more tickets than they issued for the offense in the same time period in 2008, and it stands in contrast to a decline or plateau in subway summonses in every other category. Seat hogging is punishable by a $50 fine, but many commuters say they're being ticketed during late-night commutes in mostly empty trains. more ›

No matter the time of day — nor the number of empty seats in the subway car — transit cops can issue tickets to straphangers who take up more than one seat. And according to two commuters who were hit with $50 summonses on nearly empty trains passing through the 96th Street station after midnight, the city is undergoing a ticketing blitz (again). more ›

Back in March we learned about just how many people don't stand up for people with disabilities while riding public transit. At the time, NYC Transit's Paul Fleuranges told us about a new campaign coming up, and now CityRoom points out that it's launched. With a firmer tone than the ads have had in the past, the new posters remind straphangers that not all disabilities are visible, and declare that giving up one's seat is "not only polite, it’s the law." Fleuranges commented that "It's the first time we've really stressed this," and warned that those who won't give up their seat on request will face up to a $50 fine. But with robotic trains, a slimmed down staff, and no one on hand to even gauge the effectiveness of the campaign, how will it even be enforced on subways? more ›

Starting today, extremely overweight passengers on United Airlines may be forced to buy an extra seat to accommodate their extra padding. A spokeswoman for the airline tells Bloomberg News the policy is being implemented in response to "hundreds" of complaints, and that until today more svelte customers had no choice but to "share their seat with the oversized guest." According to the new rules, an obese flier may be required to pay for an extra seat if he or she can't buckle the seatbelt (even using the seatbelt extender) or can't put the armrests down when seated. If the flight is not fully booked and two empty adjacent seats are available, flight attendants will relocate the passenger, free of charge. But if the flight is full, the passenger could be bumped to another flight or charged for an upgrade. Similar policies are already in effect at eight other domestic airlines, including Delta and Southwest. But up in ever-courteous Canada, the Supreme Court ruled that airlines must provide an extra seat for wide ends free of charge. more ›

Two Mets fans were arrested Wednesday at the team's home opener when they kicked a Shea Stadium seat to pieces and tried to smuggle it out of the facility. While it's not unheard of for fans to claim souvenirs during a stadium's last stand, what the pair failed to consider was that they were at the season home opener, not the final game. more ›