Why do people walk straight at you?

I need to know, it drives me nuts!

A work colleague once said to me, “If people walk straight at you, don’t move; let them move.” This was a long time ago. It’s still a problem today.

Picture the scene. You are walking along a path, and a group of people walk towards you. As they get closer, no one is making an effort to move to let you through. The closer they get, the more you start to wonder if they are going to let you through. The path is by a road, and the only way to get past them is to step into the road. It might be a busy road, which immediately endangers you. All because no one would step aside or the group wouldn’t go to a single file.

In the years since my former colleague gave her advice, air pods and earphones have become the norm to wear outside. Some of the earphones cut out all noise. (I know this because my nephew told me they are brilliant; apparently, you can’t hear anyone call you.) This has made the problem worse. Now, not only do people walk straight at you, they come in from the side and even from behind. Their spatial awareness goes out of the window, so to speak.

I am not an unreasonable person or someone who looks for any kind of conflict. I will always step aside for the elderly, vulnerable, mobility scooters, and parents with pushchairs. What I mean is…