• October 15, 2008

In an effort to remind riders to mind their manners, Boston is plastering its T trains and buses with "Courtesy counts" ads, reports the Boston Globe.

The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority says problems have gotten worse since the sharp rise in gas prices have increased ridership to about 1.3 million daily, and its surveys found that loud conversations and cell phone yakking were the most frequent complaints, followed by loud headphones, "trouble caused by teens," strollers, and riders who take up more than one seat.

Posters implore riders to "Be Sweet. Offer Your Seat;" "Don't Drone on the Phone," and "Don't Be a Lout. Let Them Out."

In 2006, the Globe says, the MBTA posted 1,000 placards urging civility, and handed out hundreds of $2 Dunkin' Donuts gift certificates to riders who held a door or gave up a seat, and found that there was an increase in polite behavior as a result.--Sarah Mahoney