Thu 29 May 2008 - Socialising on PT
Public transport is by its very nature a social experience. Which probably explains the number of Overheard in Melbourne posts from PT.
It’s not all people with noisy phone ringtones, those with annoyingly sniffly noses, and raucous teenagers. These are the people I’ve randomly run into on the train/tram/at stations in the last couple of years, not counting those I was travelling with anyway:
- My mum
- My dad
- My sister and her husband
- Andrew W
- Stefi
WK - Veronica W
- Naomi D from an old job
- Steve C, my sister’s business partner
- L, my ex-wife
- Fraser B from the Greens
- Kerryn W from PTUA
- Ashley G from the Herald Sun
- Phil R from an old job
- Cam T
- Clay L from The Age
- Martin whose surname I can’t remember
- Helena C
- Karl T from PTUA
- Peter G from uni
- Chris L
- John D
- Michael R
Apologies to anybody I’ve forgotten. And there’s others who occasionally spot me.
Always good to have an unexpected chat with a friendly face.
May 29th, 2008 at 1:14pm
I think this is a great example of how PT can contribute to social capital, compared to ‘antisocial’ SOVs*. Bumping into people like this helps to cement social networks, and it’s another intangible that helps to explain why people congregate in cities, despite the congestion, etc.
* Single occupant vehicles
May 30th, 2008 at 1:06am
The internet is a scarily small place. That’s my girlfriend’s Overheard In Melbourne post you linked to. I had no idea you read LiveJournal Daniel.
May 31st, 2008 at 11:09pm
Still have not got the internet (or a phone line for that matter. Having ‘ISSUES’ with Telstra. Good to see I’m not forgotten..yet!