What makes you think that I have not tried to ask her to put her foot down? She glared at me, looked up and down, then back on her phone. Have you seen someone scratching her foot with another while in public? That's unhygienic and unfair for future commuters. I am not claiming a moral high ground nor am trying to shame anybody.

The seats may be poorly designed but they are definitely not designed for commuters to prop their feet up like that. That's what the back of the seat is for and the front of it as well. Putting their feet up like that would invite them to more injuries since

1. You'll lose balance quicker than when your feet is down since your center of gravity has shifted
2. You'll pop a knee or two if the bus were to hit into something/emergency brake.

Just because you highlighted your points in bold, doesn't make your point more valid. I'd be pretty disgusted if I'm seated on a seat where a person's feet has touched and rubbed all over it, which I probably have but have not seen.