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This month there was a strong reaction against the new Coke ads running on the subway windows. The MTA has now spoken up and the organization's Jeremy Soffin tells us that it's merely "a month-long pilot designed to test the effectiveness of this material in discouraging scratchiti. We are evaluating both whether to test this further to fight scratchiti and whether it is a potential source of advertising revenue, although the focus is on the scratchiti at this point."
Perhaps with 3-figure MetroCards in the future, the focus should be on ad revenue? Not so fast, straphanger; Paul Fleuranges of the MTA tells us that "scratched and etched glass is a major vandalism problem, costing us in excess of $2.5 million a year to deal with alone." So eliminating the damage could save us all some dough in the end...it's not like stopping scratchiti artists is free all the time.
Addressing a major safety concern, Soffin added that "You can see through the windows, as verified by the NYPD in approving the pilot" (the NYPD has yet to comment on the matter). The material the ad is printed on is called Scotchcal, a 3M product; essentially it's a perforated window graphic film that allows one to see from the inside-out, but not the outside-in (so basically not at all helpful when you are being attacked in a subway car and no one can see you from the outside). The pilot cost the MTA nothing, "as Coke basically under wrote through its ad buy and CBS Outdoors contributed the labor costs to apply," according to Fleuranges.
For now, there's no word on if the initiative will continue past the pilot—it depends on "how the material holds up, public reaction and whether it has viability should it work as a revenue generator." One bonus they noted was the energy efficient tinted window effect, preventing sun soak from making the cars that run outdoors too hot and overworking the HVAC systems during the summer months.
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hmmm. let's see.... most scratchitti vandals consider themselves rebels fighting against the corporate man. I know, let's make huge corporate billboards dwarfing the only view of freedom inside a subway car. That will discourage them. instead of scratched windows. we'll have scratched ads AND scratched windows.
Unless those overlays are made out of diamonds or some other scratch-proof material, it would seem this will only encourage scratchiti. Scratching the red part off to expose what's underneath will be even more visible and uglier than scratching a clear window.
So the material HAS to be opaque from the outside and have an ad on it for it to foil scratching? Sorry, not buying it. Try again guys; this idea sucks ass.
I'm all for it. If it saves us money, it's def a good idea in spite of how it looks.
if we could see both ways, i would support this. revenue is revenue when i'm looking at a 25% increase in my metrocard.
A better mousetrap breeds smarter mice.
You can't see into the cars. I have avoided these cars everytime I see them because you can't see whats happening as a car passes. They're saying that this a scratchiti/etching preventative measure? I call bullshit. Someone fucked up and approved this.
I say cover every square inch of the MTA with ads. Fuck it, I'd rather have Coca-cola pay the MTA instead of paying $104 for a monthly.
Every other transit system, they cover the cars and leave the windows open. The MTA COVERS the windows. Dumbass move guys.
idiots -not safe! although a great plan if you want to increase other types of crimes - muggings,rape, etc
im sorry but this is moronic. cove the body of the train but dont cover the windows. it would be nice to see in a train in case their is puke, trash, crap or any of the other things ive avoided before boarding a train. also its nice that they insist that this scratchiti is costing them $2.5 mill but im sorry i dont see it, no train i ride has clean windows...where is that $2.5 mill going because its not replacing windows. cover the body of the train with an ad and keep my fare as is, i dont care about the scratchiti as its not being addressed now.
more MTA bull.
ps i find it ironic that once upon a time graffiti cover the body of trains and that was illegal, now advertistments will be covering trains and this is ok....
from
http://mta.info/nyct/safety/index.html
Protect Yourself Against Pickpockets
Stay awake. A pickpocket's easiest victim is a sleeping passenger. If you feel drowsy, it's best to get up and stand, or take another seat. When you find yourself alone in an empty subway car, move to a car that has a conductor (usually in the center of the train), a train operator (front car), or other riders. Being alert and staying in a subway car with other people are always good precautions.
This is, of course, providing you can see into the car before you get in
I am guessing there were no women who approved this stupid idea.Thanks Paul Fleuranges you idiot.
That's a lot of MTA public relations staff the Gothamist is taking up with this story. Between Soffin and Fleuranges you're probably talking at least $200,000/year salary plus lavish MTA benefits. You'd think maybe just one of them could have responded.
Just admit it, MTA, this is a terrible idea. Take the blame, "Oops, we screwed up," and move on.
This is atrocious.
Oh, come on. You guys are making up complaints. Does anyone actually look in a window to see "in case their is puke, trash, crap or any of the other things ive avoided before boarding a train"? Everybody I know and everybody I see just heads for the nearest door when the train stops. Nobody spends time looking in the windows.
Just cover the bottoms of the cars w/ ads for extra revenue. (and take the ads back off when the economy gets back on track PLEASE). Let the police deal w/ stopping subway scratchiti, not advertising. Covering the windows seems VERY uncomfortable no matter which way you block the view.
#16 - No, but I do look to see if dudes who look like manny ramirez but don't have manny's money before I get in.
Yes, I actually look in the window as the train is slowing down to see if I want to get into that car or not, even if it's only as simple as judging the likelihood of getting a seat.
#16
Actually, I do look in the windows as the train pulls in. I work off hours and if a car is pretty much empty and all the others are full, there is a definite reason !
Also, the A train used to have some cars in the morning going uptown that were filled with homeless people sleeping. Not dangerous, but if you want to 1. sit down and 2. be able to breathe, you will head for a different car.
I haven't noticed this lately (or yet....it is still early in winter..)
What is the material the ad is printed on? Is it perforated vinyl or does the image have small holes when being printed? I believe it's a matter of the light intensity that makes it clear one way and opaque the other depending on which one has the higher light value.
Additionally there is a clear film that is used to provide UV protection on windows which appears somewhat scratch resistant because it is soft. And even if it was scratched it would be a simple thing to remove the film and apply a new one.
- you can't look in. that is shitty. And yes, I and many people I know do look in (for example, I think every new yorker knows the phenomena of seeing a packed train with ONE empty car... and not getting in that one empty car because that car absolutely must smell like shit, literally)
- This will encourage, not discourage, scratchiti. Unless you're going to charge Coke to replace every defaced advertisement... and i don't think they're going for it.
- This is actually uglier than scratchiti. I'd prefer they kept a scratched up window and didn't waste the money replacing it then to have to put up with this shit.
"I think every new yorker knows the phenomena of seeing a packed train with ONE empty car... and not getting in that one empty car because that car absolutely must smell like shit, literally)"
Well, that or have no AC. But yeah, I think most experienced subway riders check out the windows as a train moves in. I tend, in stations i know well, to stand in a position that will allow me to easily get to one of two different cars... then go to the one that looks most likely to have a seat open.
Except on those trains where I have one particular single door I want to exit from.
"Being alert and staying in a subway car with other people are always good precautions.
This is, of course, providing you can see into the car before you get in"
And of course these days once you blindly get in the doors may be locked preventing you from moving to another car. Even if they aren't you're risking a ticket if you change cars.
"This is actually uglier than scratchiti."
Yeah, I can't say scratchiti really bothers me. Really, I barely notice it. Garish ads covering the windows? A little harder to ignore.
Just because scratchiti doesn't bother you personally is no reason to tolerate it. It's the "broken window hypothesis." You leave something badly maintained and it sends a message that kids can do whatever they want and it won't be fixed, and the next thing you know, we're riding in the graffiti-covered trains of the 1970s again. And I never check through the windows before getting on a train. What are you going to do, run to the next car? You probably won't make it before the doors close and how do you know the next car won't be packed to the gills anyway? I've never had a safety problem on any train, and that included the old cars where sometimes only the barest emergency lights were working.
Reading the comments at the Times blog is discouraging. It's like people just skim there. They don't seem to get the message that you can actually see out of the train through the film. They think it'll get ripped up and remain a shambles, ignoring that subway advertising is replaced and changed on a regular basis anyway, not to mention this is a tough, flexible film backed with a strong adhesive, not something you can peel off easily. In fact, MTA maintenance will probably have to use solvents and/or heat guns to remove it. Comments suggest plastering subway stations with ads, even though the very first paragraph of the blog says the MTA is already doing that. It's like people can't read anymore. And not a single post there, just like the posts here, gives me the impression that any commenter has actually seen the windows themselves.
i always look in the window before getting on. this is bullshit.
Clear Mylar, clear Mylar, and some more clear Mylar.
To be paid for by actual wrap ads.
As I said in the other post about this, I usually defend the MTA but this is pretty fucking absurd.
Say someone was dong some scratchitti inside the car and there were cops on the platform, they'd have no idea and the vandal would just go on his merry way.
Checking out subway cars before you go into them has already been covered by previous commentors.
Also, I never participate in subway vandalism, but if I was drunk and I saw a car like this, I'd scratch the fuck out of it and try to rip that shitty ass ad off.
i do look in windows prior to boarding. its quite easy to look in windows of a train prior to it completely stopping and if that car has problems move to another car before the doors close. and im not sure what line some people here ride but on the C and G the MTA does not replace ads on a regular basis. their are still ads up for the waterfalls and things older. this is a sham to put more money in execs pockets and screw the average commuter.