A Guarding Wall

Not everyone agrees whether it’s okay to put your bag or backpack on the seat next to you when traveling by train. Is it inconsiderate and rude, or is it fine? Should you then move your bag when someone else wants to sit there? According to the official NS rules about luggage, travelers are not meant to let their bags take up a seat if another traveler wishes to use it. (Fig. 2)

However you feel about putting bags on seats, the reason behind it is not the same for everyone. For many women, a train compartment can pose different dangers at various times of day. When a train is packed with people, groping is easier to conceal as an accident for perpetrators, while in a completely empty compartment, there’s a risk you get stuck with a man with bad intentions until the train stops again (see extension). So a lot of women use various precautions, such as putting their bags on the seat next to them as a sort of guarding wall. This can make it a bit less easy for other travelers to sit next to them, which also makes it a bit less easy for possible assaulters. This can make their trip slightly more safe.

Rude? Yes, maybe it is. But sadly, it’s also necessary. I, as a female-presenting person, have no female-presenting friend who doesn’t have a story of a creep on the train or bus. Especially in the dark, in an empty compartment, and with other travelers who have had more alcohol than is good for them. A backpack on a train seat seems like just an everyday object, albeit somewhat rudely placed, but can be the one thing that protects a woman from being harassed on her journey.