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Which Seat Is The Best Spot To Sit While Riding The Subway?

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) - New Yorkers have found a new hot topic to debate: The perfect seat on the subway.

The surprisingly divisive issue went viral following a tweet by rider @gabefromthebx this week.

"All my New Yorkers, which is the best seat?" he asked, showing the orange L-shaped seats found on some lines which put three front-to-back side seats by the door and two side-to-side seats further into the train.

Gabefromthebx numbered the seats 1 to 5 and asked people to name their pick. Hundreds did just that, with the tweet getting more than 1,700 retweets and 14,500 likes.

CBS2's Valerie Castro tracked down the social media sensation -- 20-year-old Gabriel Bautista -- who says he pondered the question when he found himself on an empty train with his pick of any seat.

"I decided to take a picture and ask Twitter, I didn't expect the results to come out the way they did," he said Thursday.


"1,4,3,5, 2!" posted Council Speaker Corey Johnson.

Former mayor-turned-presidential hopeful Michael Bloomberg stood up for his pick, which was basically "none of the above."

New York City Transit Authority Andy Byford also took to the standing option.

"I don't usually use seats when I ride because they are for customers," he said in a statement. "As for choosing the best, that's like asking a parent to pick a favorite child. Each one is special in its own way.

"I just love that people are kicking off the 2020s talking about subway seating," he said.

"Although everyone has different point of views... everyone has a common understanding like about number 2, number 2 is not the seat to go," Bautista joked.

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