Metro Misinformed, Part 5: Get Out the Way

Riding the Metro is confusing enough on its own. But imagine what navigating the system is like for someone who's blind? I once helped a blind man transfer at Metro Center--you know you always get tripped up over which stairs to take to go the right way on the red line too. Well, he was having an even tougher time. It's common courtesy for us to help each other out. Right?

I recently boarded the train at Fort Totten, my favorite place, along with a young man who sat in the seat reserved for the handicapped. No problem, I like those seats myself. It's a great alternative to riding backward. At Brookland/CUA, a woman boarded the train with a cane that indicated she was blind. My first instinct was to get up and help her, but she seemed to have already calculated where she would be going and what steps she needed to take. And everyone likes to be independent.

She hugged the corner of the plexiglass divider as she leaned right to take the handicapped seat. Uh oh...our boy was in the way. What did he do, you ask? Did he hop up, saying, "Here's your seat, ma'am?" Did he move over silently, giving her room to sit down?

No. He sat there and let her sit on him. And then, instead of getting up, he took her by the arms and moved her (okay, he did it gently) to those awkward first seats next to the sideways ones. She thanked him, but I bet in her head she was pissed off. There goes that independence. Who is gonna sit there and let a blind woman sit on them when they could easily get up? And then to go ahead and move her aside? This guy just didn't get it.

So people, let's be serious. The handicapped seats are for the handicapped. Let's help each other out.