Five strange things people do on trains
 January 18, 2015
 Written by Olabisi Kehinde
Fresh from a train ride, Olabisi Kehinde
recounts some of the weird and out-of-the-
world activities that some passengers engage
in on board.
A quick train ride from Lagos-Ijoko will surely
shock any passenger who is new to the route.
Lots of weird activities, ranging from smoking,
drinking, gambling to, wait for it, browsing.
Recently this reporter rode on the train from
Apapa (Lagos) to Ijoko (Ogun state) to avoid
the road traffic that had become intolerable
going into the New Year.
The first shock this reporter received was that
a good number of the passengers seemed to
board the train for the simple fact that it gives
them an opportunity to several other drinking
friends and engage in endless drinking spree
all through the journey.
Best place to drink
Interestingly, a couple boarded the train at
Yaba station. You could tell that they were
lovebirds and not a few heads turned as they
negotiated their ways to empty seats in a
corner, even as they chatted endlessly. Not
long after, the man excused himself and up.
But after waiting endlessly for a while, the wife
stood up to look for her husband. But along
the line, she met his friend, who told her that
her husband was on top of the moving train
drinking. Asked why he had to go all the way
to the top of the train to drink, her man told
her that it is the best place to drink, because
he feels the breeze and see things around him.
Best place to browse
After a while, this reporter also observed that
some guys were migrating to the top of the
moving train to browse. Perplexed, she
approached one of them, Ebube to ask why.
“That is the best place to browse” he replied.
He said it is always a great feeling and
preferable to browse at the top of the train,
because the network is always good and really
nice. It does not matter to them how
dangerous this great adventure is and that
they could lose their lives in the process. In
fact, investigation revealed that many lives
have been lost in the course of this reckless
action, and it is a wonder that others have not
learnt any lessons. Somehow, they always
believe that are safe.
Reserving seats for those still at home
Another funny but annoying habit is the fact
that some people purchase multiple tickets
mainly to reserve seats for their friends and
families, most of whom might still be in bed
(in case of early morning rides) or yet to get
to the station or waiting for the train at the
next stations.
In the process, legitimate passengers who are
qualified to sit are made to stand, frustrated,
while new entrants stroll in to claim the seats
reserved for them. This has also resulted in
crises. One passenger recalled how one
evening, a man kept a ticket on the seat to
reserve it for a passenger yet to get on board
and a group of guys who felt enough was
enough flung the tickets aside and took their
seats. An argument ensued, which eventually
led to a fracas.
Corrupting the checkers
This reporter also discovered that some
criminally-minded passengers have formed the
bait of tipping the train checkers, thereby
corrupting them in the process. A passenger
actually chipped in that most of the checkers
always end up collecting the tip, as it is either
they collect or such passengers ride free.
“They prefer to tip the checkers with N100,
rather than buy the ticket of N230, thereby
shortchanging the railway corporation.” One
passenger chipped in.
Dangerous hangers
This might be a familiar sight to a lot of
people, but it is nevertheless dangerous and
an eyesore. Passengers have been known to
fall off, while a particular story was told of
how one of the men who was hanging, was
snatched by a thick branch in the middle of
nowhere, as the train sped off and flung to the
body of the heavy steel machine.
Needless to say, neither the train nor the other
passengers stopped to take another look.
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