Elderly person defends train passenger who 'refused to give up' first-class seat to older lady

We’ve all heard the news of the woman who decided to stand her ground when an elderly lady asked if she could take her first-class seat.

And unless you’ve been living in a cave the past day or so, you'll have heard how the woman was allegedly hounded by the vulnerable lady on a seven-hour train journey from London to Aberdeen.

The passenger explained on a Reddit thread that she booked the seat in advance, but was given a 'priority seat' upon boarding and was not willing to give that seat up for anybody else - no matter how much they bothered her.

For those unfamiliar with a train layout (seriously, where have you been?), priority seats are situated at the start and end of each carriage and are designed for people with mobility issues.

Well, another older woman has since chimed in on the conversation and has actually defended the woman in her choice not to move from her pre-booked seat.

The woman in her 60s took to the comments section of the thread on the social media platform to say that she ‘wouldn’t expect’ to take someone else’s seat just because of her age.

Vuk Valcic / Alamy Stock Photo

The social media user said: “I travelled by train for the first time in years at the beginning of this month - Edinburgh to Reading.

“I booked a seat on the way down but it was an open return,” she explained

“I’m 62. I have a bit of bother with my legs these days, but I wouldn’t expect to get a priority seat.”

She went on to explain that she was ‘searching for the old-fashioned cards’ that used to indicate that a seat was reserved on the train, but that has since been replaced with automated signs above seats.

“On the train down, 'green' meant the seat was free, 'red' meant it was booked, 'amber' meant it was free for part of the way - and it told you which part of the journey.

Belinda Jiao / Alamy Stock Photo

“I didn't have a seat reserved on the way back, but the info was very clear and I got an unreserved seat,” she added, explaining that she was instead able to land a comfy spot for her train journey.

However, the original elderly person in question was said to ‘point out that the train was full and there were no other seats'.

“I apologised but reiterated that I'd booked the seat and wasn't going to move,” the original passenger said.

But she clearly seems to be considered off the hook by others who would have stuck to their guns - or rather, their seats - and done the same thing.