In a pilot project expected to be adopted in other cities across the nation, Metro Transit in Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minnesota, will be assigning seats to passengers as they board the buses. This move comes in response to the highest ridership in Metro Transit’s history, which has resulted in crowded conditions on many of the buses, with passengers often scrambling to get the best seats. Numerous “bus rage” incidents have been documented in recent years, with territorial passengers sometimes resorting to fisticuffs over their “favorite” seats. Transit authorities hope the new system will level the playing field for all riders.

“It’s sorta like concert seating,” said Wally Gubbins, Metro Transit spokeman. “Back in the day, they used to let you sit anywhere, until that Who concert in the ’70s. Now you get an assigned seat. Same with our buses. You get on, swipe your card and it tells you what seat to sit in. It makes things more orderly and fair, and prevents a stampede at the bus stop.”

The new smart-card scanner, the “Kattle Kall,” manufactured by Transit Technologies, Inc., will be installed on each Metro Transit bus.

The card-reader system will assign seats from front to back, on a first-come, first-served basis. Seats will be numbered in much the same way as airline seats, with rows and numbers displayed. The card scanners on board the buses will take into account the special needs of disabled passengers who carry special passes, and assign them front seats.

“But we really don’t always get a lot of disabled passengers to fill up those front seats,” added Gubbins. “So the drivers have the discretion to override the system and let the fat people grab up the forward seats so they don’t block the aisles farther back. Otherwise, if you want a good seat, better get to the bus stop early and get in line.”

Signs have been posted at bus stops, transit hubs and Park & Ride lots, advising passengers of the new system, which will be implemented on March 15.