Toward a more civil commuter society

By adamg on Tue, 10/14/2008 - 10:30am

Like, oh my Gawd, that's me up on that poster! It's like I'm at a Sox game!

The MBTA today launched a new program to try to ~~beat some sense into clueless riders~~ get T riders to be more considerate toward one another - and obey the law.

Subway and bus riders will soon be seeing hundreds of posters like the above, addressing everything from giving up your seat to people who really need them to the need to clean up after yourself to the requirement that you actually pay your fare (that last one already seems to be paying dividends). In a statement, the T says the ads are "a series of innovative public awareness displays specifically designed to attract attention in a fun, light-hearted manner while promoting courtesy and civility."

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Comments

Solution to the credit crisis

By AdamPieniazek
Tue, 10/14/2008 - 10:39am

The MBTA can step in and loan everyone money since they're apparently swimming in it.

Best use of MBTA funds ever. <-----the arrow of sarcasm

Revenge of the phone zombies!

By Cleary Squared
Tue, 10/14/2008 - 10:44am

Whenever I'm on the T, or any place in general, and I see a person with their cellphone glued to their ear, yammering away without regard to their surroundings, I call them phone zombies.

Most of the time, the cellphone users are polite, have a short conversation, and that's it. Not so the phone zombies. The T should also gently nudge its riders thusly: "If you don't want the attention, don't discuss it on the T."

Earplugs on T

By liveinvt
Tue, 10/14/2008 - 11:48am

I've been wearing earplugs on the T for months now, and it's amazing. You never miss a stop since the automated messages are rather loud.

You don't have to use them all the time, just those moments when it's crowded or loud and you feel yourself getting annoyed by others, that's the time to bust them out.

iPods and headphones are only somewhat helpful because you need to turn it up so much to drown out the noise - harmful to your ears.

Absurd

By Commute-a-holic
Tue, 10/14/2008 - 11:00am

This has got to be the most absurd thing I've seen come out of the T ever.

Muni Manners already does this and they do it better.

I cannot even believe that the T spent money on this campaign.

Here's an idea - maybe riders would be nicer if they actually could get to where they need to go on time? What about if the trains or buses were clean? What a freakin' concept, huh?

yeah right

By kari_jane
Tue, 10/14/2008 - 11:22am

Before I moved to Allston, I lived a 5-minute walk from just about everywhere I ever needed to be. Now that I spend about 7 hours every week on the B line, I understand just how rude people actually are. There is NOTHING more annoying than being forced to listen to the loud (and usually very personal) conversation of the person next to me when all I'm trying to do is get home after a very long day. And don't even get me started on people who think their backpack/purse/jacket deserves its own seat.

That being said, does the T really think people are going to stop doing those things because of a poster? The phone jerks are clueless that there are even other people around them, nevermind knowing what it says on the wall. I think the T should spend some of the money it doesn't have elsewhere, like trying to figure out how to improve service or keep fares lower, rather than something they really aren't going to be able to do anything about.

My favorite is the one

By DVDWow
Tue, 10/14/2008 - 11:44am

My favorite is the one telling people not to stand in the doorway when people are trying to get off.

Be alert, not a lout

By adamg
Tue, 10/14/2008 - 12:03pm

You louts!

oh haha, I thought DVDWOW

By liveinvt
Tue, 10/14/2008 - 12:20pm

oh haha, I thought DVDWOW was harshing on random T riders who pipe up and whine about people being inefficiently positioned in the T. People like me...

Hey we could make our own slogans for the polite police:
"Be a robot, not a donut. File into the back of the train upon entering like a good citizen."

And when do we get to bash the "Train approaching" system that give us a 2 second warning before we would otherwise simply see the train approaching? Fine use of (presumably) millions of dollars on that one.

"Train approaching" is useful

By Ron Newman
Tue, 10/14/2008 - 12:50pm

It tells you which train is approaching (Ashmont or Braintree), and also gives you some idea whether you should break into a run.

Not Useful Enough

By Michael
Tue, 10/14/2008 - 12:53pm

for them to install it on the Green Line, though, where someone waiting at Park for an outbound train might benefit from knowing a few seconds in advance whether to scramble down to the D/E section or stay where the B and C board.

"Train approaching" system

By Ron Newman
Tue, 10/14/2008 - 12:55pm

probably depends on some technology that is only installed or installable on heavy-rail subway lines.

The "... is approaching" and

By neilv
Tue, 10/14/2008 - 12:53pm

The "... is approaching" and "... is arriving" messages have been accurate every time I've heard them. Mostly in the Central Square station.

(Though, on average over the course of a year, I ride the T only around one day out of ten. Walk, not drive.)

Ideas approaching. Please remain behind..

By liveinvt
Tue, 10/14/2008 - 1:38pm

Oh, I am not disputing the accuracy. It accurately informs folks who can hear what they would otherwise know in 2-5 seconds from looking.

And to Ron's point, whether or not you should start running.

The system has raised the bar of train-awareness by a few seconds, at the cost of (still presumably) millions of dollars.

What would actually be useful is a realtime GPS* map of all train locations on all rail lines. It's so possible it makes me sad we don't already have such a system. The only reason for not having such a thing is "security" so folks couldn't coordinate bombings, or whatever they do.

But seriously, if there was a realtime GPS map of car locations, and that data was tangible, you could have "accurate" clocks of WHEN the next train would actually arrive, rather than the 2 second notice.

(On all red line trains, if you feel the force and direction of the underground wind, you can become aware of a train before the "approaching" message.)

*GPS may or may not work in all underground T spaces, but I'm rather certain a work-around could be implemented.

Train locations

By Gareth
Tue, 10/14/2008 - 1:53pm

They wouldn't be able to use GPS, but they shouldn't need it. At some location (I am not sufficiently familiar with the T) they must have a control center that displays information about current location of trains. I've seen such a visual display at other systems' control centers, and I feel sure the T must have this information too.

The ideal solution would be to put LEDs on the different stations/segments on the map and display the actual location of all trains to the public.

Does the old system map at

By adamg
Tue, 10/14/2008 - 1:56pm

Does the old system map at Maverick still work?

Lost in the renovation

By Michael
Tue, 10/14/2008 - 2:10pm

At least I've never seen one there.

But now at least you have to walk all the way from Sumner St. to the new entrance, and then all the way down the platform until you're directly under where you were, so it's nice to see they're thinking of us. And don't even get me going on them having to pull all the way up to where they'd stop if it was a 6-car train (which I seriously think there's only one of, and god forbid they use it at any other that what they consider "peak" hours, because it's not like the Blue Line train is as crowded as the last chopper out of Saigon at all hours of the day), which it never is. Sorry to anyone old or on crutches, but they've just "improved" your walk by another quarter mile.

Maverick Square station

By Ron Newman
Tue, 10/14/2008 - 2:14pm

will have two entrances once it's completed. They had to open the new entrance before they could close the old one and renovate it.

Block Signaling

By Arborway
Tue, 10/14/2008 - 7:44pm

Heavy Rail (i.e: Red, Blue and Orange) lines use block signaling which can be used to trigger the announcements.

I can't imagine the train approaching / arriving system costing any great deal of money to implement. The information is already being transmitted.

Moreover, I happen to like them.

forehead slap

By Brett
Tue, 10/14/2008 - 1:59pm

*GPS may or may not work in all underground T spaces, but I'm rather certain a work-around could be implemented.

It won't work in *any* underground T spaces, since it requires nearly line-of-sight of satellite radio signals. Receivers made in the last 2 years or so can pick up the signal through some roofs, but that's the limit.

slappity slap

By liveinvt
Tue, 10/14/2008 - 2:41pm

The asterisk was all for you, B

yay!

By Spatch
Tue, 10/14/2008 - 4:29pm

Be alert!
The world needs more lerts!

what does standing in the doorway have to do with getting off?

By bostnkid
Tue, 10/14/2008 - 1:05pm

that irish guy was getting off all over the place.

I'm going to make my own stickers

By Kaz
Tue, 10/14/2008 - 12:44pm

I'll make bumper sticker slogans and then slap them on the front windows from the outside as the bus/trolley/train comes to a stop.

They'll say things like:

Why are you driving so slow?
We've got places to go!

Please open doors in the back.
This train is full packed!

I don't mean to cuss,
but where the hell is my bus?

How about posters for T drivers

By adamg
Wed, 10/15/2008 - 9:07am

Along the same vein, John Greiner-Ferris suggests ads that drivers can see, such as: "Don't be a boor, open the door."

How about one that suggests that maybe they can keep the door open for a split second or so longer when they see someone running for the train late at night instead of shutting the doors right in their face?

the T has an electric map

By bostonian
Tue, 10/14/2008 - 3:05pm

At the control center of the T they have a system wide electric map showing the location of all their subway trains real-time. I don't know why they don't show it to all their subway commuters.

Security reasons, maybe?

By DarkSun
Tue, 10/14/2008 - 3:09pm

Perhaps a combination of security concerns and implementation difficulties? The countdown system on the Silver Line Washington Street was an awesome pain in the rear end to implement...

T Timing

By liveinvt
Tue, 10/14/2008 - 3:58pm

Interesting... I googled around and found this:
http://www.mbta.com/about_the_mbta/news_events/?id...

So it sounds like the MBTA actually wants to implement my (un) original idea! Yay!

They say it's cost prohibitive to do it at "8,000" locations, but they didn't want to start with the most used station in existence, Park Street? C'mon Grubby... git 'er done.

At least they're thinking about ideas. Sometimes you really have to wonder...

And they use GPS for the stuff above ground, and I'm not sure what "LED" solutions would be viable under ground, but it is an easy enough problem to solve if they can afford it with current budgets.

I will *volunteer* right here to create the Park Street Light Board project... I'm sure I could create a coalition with those MIT kids.

Big Plans to Pee your Pants? Leave the train at your next chance!