The rucksack nuisance on our trains

The rule at Harrods is clear: carry your rucksack as if it were an ordinary bag, by hand at your side. It makes good sense.

The same rule should be applied to Bangkok's increasingly congested mass transit systems. People should be told to remove their rucksacks before entering the passenger carriages. The worst offenders are, of course, tourists carrying giant rucksacks on their backs - and sometimes on their front as well. Their behavious is really antisocial since they could easily remove their luggage and place it on the floor of the train.

But it's not just tourists who are a nuisance. Students and local shoppers often forget they are carrying rucksacks too, and bang into fellow passengers as they twist and turn to get into or leave the carriage.

With the tourist season at its height and more people using the airport train to link in to the suburban transit systems, these inconsiderate rucksack carriers need to be tamed.