I don’t mean just returning your shopping cart to the cart area, but actually sliding it back in. At my grocery store, some people half ass stack it back in or don’t at all. This drives me nuts because when I come to return my cart I have to fix the mess before I can return mine. Plus, I don’t want the workers who collect the carts to do any more work than they already do.
I caught this one guy who was returning his cart and I had to wait until he was done. Instead of stacking his cart, he just left it there in front of the stack and I said, “C’mon man!” He was surprised and said, “Oh!” then immediately stacked his cart.
If you shove it in the cart corral then it will either slot in correctly or be positioned for it. Unless you’re one of those assholes who shoves the mini-cart in the normal-cart line.
I kind of like it. There’s something satisfying about giving my cart a shove and having a bunch of carts line up together with loud crashing noises
I fucking hate it when people don’t return their carts, and yes I always slide them in and condence the stack as much as possible. I used to have to do carts while working retail, and I would have to pick up so many carts that people just left on the curb or even in parking stalls. Some of them wouldn’t even return them when right next to the corral, and instead just block an entire parking stall.
The worst was working carts in the 100°F+ heat. I had to take breaks every 15 minutes or so just to avoid heat stroke, and while resting I would see these people just leaving carts in the places I had just cleaned up. Infuriating.
Generally yes. I don’t really point it out to people if it’s like… 2-3 carts in the corral, and they don’t fully stack them. Long as they’re in there. I’ve seen a massive pileup outside of one once, had to be about 10-15 carts? Couldn’t return a cart even if you wanted to. Ended up pushing them all together. I used to be a cart pusher, I know how bad it sucks, plus those loose carts can cause damage if the wind kicks up
Of course it is. Not just for the workers but for the exact reasons you’ve stated.
As a European it feels so surreal reading the stories of Americans not returning the shopping carts
Years ago when I first bought one of those multitool hairclips it mentioned it could be used as a trolley coin and I had to look that up. I discovered that in a lot of European countries it’s customary for carts to be locked together with a lock that takes a coin to unlock then returns the coin if you correctly return and nest the cart. Now, it does take a decently curated social milieu to design systems that promote prosocial behavior. That said, that particular prosocial behavior not only had to be mechanically encouraged, but has also led to the development of something called a “trolley coin” to circumvent the mechanism for people who are diametrically opposed to that prosocial behavior.
In Norway, the trolley coined gained popularity as society went mostly cashless, yet the trolleys demanded their token. An earlier factor was that it was annoying to make sure you always had a coin of the correct denomination (physical size). Trolley coins can be part of your keychain, or won’t be accidentally used to buy a newspaper before going to the grocery store.
Most people still return the trolley and slide it in, like civilized humans should
Yep, in Poland we have those locked trolleys, but more and more stores don’t do that anymore, as people return the carts anyway
Tbh I think the plastic coins came around more as a convenience. If you have one in your wallet you always have the option of taking the trolley. You might not always have coins or the right sized coins. At least I know I don’t have any coins most of the time.
I always slide the cart in. It’s rather satisfying when it slides and chucks against the cart in front, sort of like an acknowledgement of the attachment.
I believe I desperately need some new hobbies, on a side note.
No, but I usually do it, anyway.
People in New Orleans are so shitty that they just don’t have cart stalls. It would be pointless because nobody would bother.
Not mine, credit to Portuguese Geese
No, it’s best to leave your cart in the carpark where it blocks cars, to incentivise taking the bus.
fuckcars is leaking again!
Damn I gotta subscribe to that comm, I want MULTIVERSE users to see it
I think if you’re going to go through the trouble to return your cart to the cart area then yeah, slot that bad boy into the stack the way it’s supposed to go. Otherwise it’s like those people who pick up their dog’s poop and just hang the bag on a tree branch for someone else to put in the trash. Either do the thing, or don’t do the thing. Doing it halfway just makes a different kind of mess.
I found out a new (new to me at least) bit of cart-return etiquette last year when I was using the handicap parking spaces for a couple months following ankle surgery. Grocery carts double as walking aids for a lot of people with mobility issues while they’re at the store. Many people with those issues will purposely leave their carts in the handicap area as a courtesy for the next person with mobility issues so they can have it right away and not have to struggle all the way to the cart area. So there’s at least one instance where not returning your cart doesn’t make you a horrible person.
Eh… I don’t know their life. Maybe they tossed it in and ran because their infant was in the car waiting. I’ve had to do that before.
Yes, but it’s a minor thing. Like, if that’s the moral line you won’t cross you better be some sort of ascetic saint, lol. Some people are just anal about these things because of their neurodivergence (I’m one of those, although it’s mild), and as such it’s important not to randomly harass someone for it… I’d just put it in its place and forget about it. 🤷
