The “Strategic Location” gambit is perhaps the most valuable tip, and is used by experienced riders to reduce the daily commute by perhaps 10 minutes/day (which adds up to a work-week of time saved in a year!), particularly because it allows you to exit the car and dash up/down the stairs without the obstruction of the plodding herd of transit-goers traversing subway stairs as if they’re climbing Mt. Everest.

I too have pondered the deep philosophical conundrum of the “seat next to the door.” On the one hand, it is true that you get more shoulder room when you sit next to the door. But on the other hand, it is also true that when seated there you might end up with a “leaner” or backpack or fanny invading your space (and your face!). I must confess that I favor sitting in that seat, and fend off interlopers by (a) aggressively leaning on the side bar with my elbow sticking out, and (b) [if necessary] grasping the upright pole in a way that fends off people who want to hold on to the bar right in front of my face.

Why? Because the trains get so packed that if you don’t have the empty space above the person seated to lean into, you could get smooshed in the crush. (Also from that row you have access to the overhead netting shelf above the seats to put your suitcase/backpack onto. Being in the center standing row is definitely the worst.) Once, unable to get into my strategic position, I found myself pressed up against seven other people (picture that!).

Isaiah,
Ditto about the high-turnover stations. It’s okay to stand in the door when 3-4 people are getting on but when there are 15 then you’re a jerk.

There are two reasons. First, standing in the door when you know lots of people are getting on and off is bad karma, and lord knows there’s enough of that in the subway. Second (and more importantly!), being in the middle of the car makes you the best prepared to grab one of the seats that will surely open up.

Finally, if you want to avoid the rush-hour crunch, you can ditch the Strategic Location rule and instead shoot for the second or second-to-last cars; these are usually the least crowded (owing to the bell curve, which crowds the middle cars, and also to the fact that trains don’t always cover the entire platform, forcing extra people into the cars at the end). You might have to walk a few extra feet at your destination (and maybe at your departing station, too), but that’s more than worth it if you’re less crunched on the way there, and doubly so if you can get a coveted rush-hour seat.