May 9, 2008
"Ten Plagues" of the Subway Set Forth by Straphangers
Photograph by Sacha Lecca, which Gothamist published in 2006. Today it’s on the cover of amNY.
Flooding. Crowding. Filth. These are just a few of the “ten plagues” being visited daily upon New York commuters, according to transit activists at the Straphangers Campaign. Unlike the ten plagues that cursed the commute of ancient Egyptians, New Yorkers have – so far – been spared swarms of locusts on the L; though bed bugs have been sighted on subway platform benches.
Gene Russianoff, lead gadfly for the Straphangers, tells amNY that he’s already been “chastised for leaving out rats, cockroaches and subway preachers.” But watching your train pull away just as you get to the platform made the top ten, as did commuting with children. A spokesman for Pharoah – er, MTA – responded to the plague list by reminding commuters that they're continuing to work hard to serve “the greatest city in the world.” And at least when the subway floods it isn't blood in blood. The Straphangers' full plagues list after the jump.
The Straphangers Campaign thinks there are many other challenges frequently facing riders in the subways. So we are releasing our list of "ten plagues of the subways." Bedbugs don't make the list. While city transit has improved in many ways, riders must deal with these problems all too often. These are the subway curses of:But what about 'Dead rat in the change chute' of the Metrocard machine'?
- Overcrowding
- Delays
- Long waits
- Flooding
- Summer heat
- Dirty seats
- Garbled announcements
- MetroCard mis-swipes
- Just missing a train
- Traveling with your newborn
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I'd have to go with the subway preachers. Somehow, I can deal with just about anything else.
Oh, and yuppies.
Great picture
I cant believe that's at 34th & 8th Ave station too
pretty trafficked area - not the Broadway Stop on the G train
Rats. Definitely.
I can see fixes for many of these..
Overcrowding, delays, long waits, garbled announcements, just missing a train could all be alleviated by upgrading the antiquated switching into the 21st century. A major reason why the MTA can't do this is because the unions won't allow anything that could possibly result in a loss of jobs. Think how great it would be if there were electronic signs outside the station notifying you when the next train is coming and where it currently is.
Dirty seats is partly to blame on the slobs who dirty them.
Metrocard misswipes could be fixed with RFID chips. The swiping was a shortsighted decision.
Summer heat could be helped if they reduced the amount of air conditioning on every train, didn't leave the doors open when delayed in a station, and used magnetic braking.
Flooding is probably incredibly difficult. And I'm not sure what the complaint about travelling with a newborn is??? Yes, having a baby in the city isn't very easy.
Boarding with a very obvious sick partner with
Shakey Parkinson's disease on the way to the hospital and not getting a seat from the ipod
generation,my only feeling is that it will get
worse when they are my age and more crowded.
I do not expect courtesy to old age as it was
when i was young nor to pregnant women
who don't get seat consideration either.
Glad I will be gone soon by natural age.
I hate to take sides with the MTA (I know they blame them for flooding and a plethora of additional ridiculousness), but I think the free newspaper vendors are getting on up there in terms of plagues. At my stop, there's one who hunkers down on a dry tier of the entry staircase when it is raining. It completely jams up the stairway and creates a logjam of wet, angry people trying to descend and ascend.
Subway Preachers? Here's a bunch.
http://www.lilsubwaycrybaby.com/?page_id=17
I can't freaking deal with these people.
Howsabout traveling with other people's children? I consider strollers the new Panzer tank.
Unions may be preventing some progress, but you're ignoring the fact that your proposals would cost millions of dollars to implement.. let's re-engineer the train cars, yeah that'll be cheap.
When I saw that photo I thought it was another installation of the NYC Waterfalls Project.
I actually like the rats. They're kind of cute!
I hate the preacher!
If I am going to spend eternity in hell, can I at least get a little peace and quiet on my commute to work?
Add the Mariachi Brothers, the hip hop guys, the gospel guys, and the beggars...
www.forgotten-ny.com
Street News Dude, kids selling candies for their "basketball uniforms", stinking bums who sleep across the seats, people who push in without letting passengers out first..the list can go on forever.
I kinda like the Mariachi Brothers, and there's a Doo Wop Trio sometimes, too. They always make me smile. The Preachers, I'm no so fond of.
Love that photo, Sacha Lecca, congrats!
@politburo - oh no, millions of dollars! What's the MTA budget again?
And I know it's a novel concept, but spending now will save money later. Remember when some switching closet caught fire and there was only one company still making the switches? And the MTA said they wouldn't have it fixed for years?
11. Guy sitting next to me this morning who decided to whip it out and urinate on a crowded train during my commute to work.
i'm the witness to the dead rat in the change chute. just another way for nyc to surprise you.
Why on earth does NYC allow eating and drinking in the cars and stations?? In no other city do you have to sit and watch some family chowing down on their saucy platters, balancing drinks between their knees, or someone spilling a bag of M & M peanuts that commence to roll all over the car for the remainder of its shift... It is simply unfathomable.
As for the preachers, has anyone tried standing up to one and asking them to please spare everyone the message?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U8AnEHKZM1I
If only our trains had more people like this.
* Overcrowding: Better signaling systems that allow for more trains to run on the line more efficently. Actually in the works.
* Delays: Same as above, has improved. Delays and accidents happen, but they should work on a unified system to let subway riders know what the hell is happening and how to cope.
* Long waits: Same as above
* Flooding: More Pumps? Better Drainage? Rafts for people, rats, homeless.
* Summer heat: Good question. The heat I can live with. Its the heat + the urine smell in some stations that kills me.
* Dirty seats: Clean your stinkin ass.
* Garbled announcements: Arrange proper english classes for train crews. And better announcement system.
* MetroCard mis-swipes: RFID chips as Eric said, already deployed as a test on the Lex Ave Line. I tried it and it works great.
* Just missing a train: Sucks to be you. But its nice to have electronic signs to let you know when the next one is coming like whats on the L line.
* Traveling with your newborn: Stuff the child inside a well ventilated, but soundproof box. And place holes on the bottom for urine and feces to flow.
Who should be banned during RUSH HOURS: People with Buick size baby carriages (some of these kids are big enough to walk) and lazy asses taking their bikes on the subway. RIDE YOUR BIKE.
I recently took the L train out to W'burg and experienced the "conductor-less" ride on that line - and I liked it. The ride was smooth, no jerking back and forth as the train maintained a steady speed, and it stopped smoothly. I'd like to see this technology applied to other lines.
I hate it when I'm sitting in an empty or nearly subway car and someone decides to sit right next to me! This happens too much. Do they think I'm going to protect them from the black thugs or something.
It's so freaking annoying. Thank god for Ipods or they'd try harder to strike up a conversation or something.
For #5, I hate it when the old people or pregnant ladies rush into the car, push other people aside, and right in front of me.
Do you think I'm an undercover cop or used to be a boy scout? I'm not giving you my seat. I saw how rude you were to the other person and tried to push them out your way assuming because I'm in shape and clean cut I must be some good old farm boy tourist or something, feel some sort of guilt, and offer you my seat. It ain't happening.
How about the endless track work on the A and C lines which makes weekend and late night travel a nightmare for those of us who live above 168th Street. I hear now that the weekend disruptions will continue through 2009??? I appreciate keeping things maintained but how much track work is needed there?
Hey #5, if you were with someone who was sick, wouldn't a cab (or an ambulance) have been a way more obvious option for all concerned??
Smelly food and the mind-numbingly idiotic jerks that sit there smacking that shit like they're in the back of a minivan.
Just came across this very funny blog, Commuter Outrage, which lists a whole bunch of additional plagues on the NY subway. Here's the list.
I don't agree with all of them - like "Complete lack of customer service," for example. There's always someone working the booth at my stop. But the rest are all true from my experience......
Pretty damn funny what we put up with every day - and to see it all there in one list, hahahaha.