BOSTON (AP) — The Boston-area transit system is hoping to kick manspreading to the curb.

The Boston Globe reports (http://bit.ly/2tUdbJq) that the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority has begun a lighthearted digital campaign to discourage men from sitting with their legs wide apart, crowding out riders who might otherwise squeeze into a seat on a packed rush-hour train.

The transit system is also asking people carrying large, heavy backpacks to take them off when boarding the train. The backpacks take up space and often bang into other passengers.

In a brief animated video that recently...