One recent proposal by the departing UK’s Chief Medical Officer to reduce the problem of childhood obesity was to ban snacking on public transport.
But there are no details as to how this could be properly policed and enforced. Will people be strip searched before they board public transport? Will they be frisked in case they have a secretly concealed Ginster steak bake in their socks?
And what would the punishment be if someone is caught snacking on public transport? Would they incur an on the spot fine or be ejected at the next stop? Some may take the fine in preference to being dispatched at Meopham.
Many rail guards hide in their cabs and seem reluctant to carry out a ticket inspection when kids are travelling for fear of being abused and pelted with Haribo’s.
Trying to get passengers to take their feet off the seats is a constant struggle, so trying to confiscate people’s food will probably cause a riot. Although I would publicly applaud any guard who managed to throw a teenager’s hot smelly McDonald’s from a train window.
When I was growing up, children were warned of the dangers of taking sweets from strangers. Now, we’re asking strangers to take sweets from children.
This cannot be right. Twice, I’ve reluctantly had to hand over my food to Wetherspoons bouncers outside. On the first occasion, I didn’t mind when I left the pub hours later to discover they’d cheekily eaten my Twix. The next time, I was a bit miffed to discover they’d eaten my entire weekly trolley shop. Especially as I had been drinking and was feeling really hungry.
Many think the real major contributing factors for childhood obesity are manufacturers not producing healthier products, and an influx of take-aways near schools. They also blame a lack of parental education regarding nutritional information and fewer places for safe physical activity and modern technology leading to a more sedentary lifestyle.
So, will people stop snacking on public transport? Fat chance.
Categories:Transport
Russ Writes 
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