Manners On Buses

Press, Volume XCVII, Issue 28532, 11 March 1958, Page 3

Manners On Buses

Sir, —Without wishing to denigrate my countrymen I can’t agree that manners on English buses are better than they are here. The queueing system is a practical and necessary measure there, but it makes no concession to the natural courtesy that the English normally display, especially as motorists. If a palsied ancient jpins the end of a long queue nobody would dream of ceding their place to her, nor would they emerge from behind their newspapers to notice that she was • hanging precariously on to a strap. I am glad to know that an official effort is now being made to compel the young to respect the claims of age, but there must still be parents who refuse to allow children to

relinquish their seats on the grounds that “I’ve paid yer fare, ain’t I?” One of the pleasanter features of life in Christchurch is the absence of regimentation at bus stops, and the almost invariable consideration shown to their elders by the young of both sexes in offering them their seats. —Yours, etc., I.S.T. March 8, 1958.

Sir,—-The “Kiwi” recently returned from a holiday in Britain who wishes to compare the manners of bus passengers there with those here must be accepted as writing of his experiences. 1 can speak only of my own, and I seize this chance to pay a tribute to the countless young passengers (school children and many considerably older) who, on the two bus routes that I use regularly, have so willingly and pleasantly given up their seats to me. There is confusion at the main bus stops at busy periods, but I have not noticed any jostling, and the delay while the driver collects each fare allows an interval for each passenger to find a place.—Yours, etc., ELDERLY BUT NOT DECREPIT. March 9, 1958.