This week’s question (Have your own? Submit it here.):

On regional rail, I often sit in the aisle of a three-seater, knowing the car will fill up at rush hour. When it does, I stand up so another passenger can take the middle seat, then return to my aisle seat. My friend says that’s awkward on a busy car, and I should just slide over. Who’s right?

Beatrice Forman, Food & Dining Reporter

I feel like sliding over is one of those things that’s baked into the social contract of riding public transit, tbh.

If it’s a busy car, it’s your moral duty to slide over and free up the aisle seat. Sitting at the end of the row is a defensive posture that makes it seem like you don’t want someone next to you.

Abigail Covington, Life & Culture Reporter

The right thing to do is slide over.

Beatrice Forman

I think it’s weird because it treats the middle seat kind of like a punishment? And most Regional Rail rides aren’t long enough to the point that it matters. One of my favorite facts about Regional Rail is that none of the trains have bathrooms because the trips aren’t that long.

Abigail Covington

I would absolutely do what the writer does. Everybody knows the middle seat is terrible. The window is better because you don’t have people on either side of you. The aisle is better because it makes it easier and faster to get off the train. The only reason to sit in the middle is if there is nowhere else to sit. If the aisle was open when you got to it, you hold onto that seat for dear life. It’s basically like riding first class for free.

Beatrice Forman

I don’t know that taking the middle seat makes it that much slower to get off the train. It’s like when people stand as soon as the airplane lands! It doesn’t help you move any quicker. The real prime real estate is getting a seat close enough to a door. First class does still have middle seats, after all.

I always slide over because of the golden rule. I would hate to be relegated to the middle seat for the rest of my life just because my stop is closer to the end of the line.

Abigail Covington

Yeah, Bea, you’re correct. The right, polite thing to do is slide over. If you’re getting up to let someone else in, you’re causing commotion in the aisle, forcing others to move, or shoving them closer together. Trains work best when everybody on them work together to create a seamless, efficient experience. Like stepping off the train at a stop if you’re standing by the door. By not scooting over, you’re being a bottleneck.

Beatrice Forman

And no one likes a bottleneck.

Abigail Covington

Exactly. And I say that with love, as a fellow aisle seat-addicted bottleneck.

Beatrice Forman

You know, at least they’re not one of those people that take their shoes off on the train. Those people deserve the middle seat for life.