Uptown on the A and C lines, the MTA is testing out convenient countdown clocks like the ones used in L train terminals. "I think it's great," said Richard Lehman at 145th St. "I never understood why they didn't do it before." The answer? Because they're expensive and the authority has cash-flow problems—in recent days it's been criticized for its constant and unpredictable service cuts and changes. Timers at four stations—145th, 155th, 163rd and 168th streets—cost $20,000, and and though expansion of the system may be more of a band-aid than a solution, passengers are grateful nonetheless. "It's good to know how long it's going to be because you have other options, different choices," said another rider at a newly-equipped terminal. more ›

The crazy steam-spewing Union Square "Metronome" clock is off by 52 minutes! Does anyone even know how to read this thing? One blogger explains just how to decipher it:

The 15 numbers of the digital clock display time going and coming relative to midnight. Read time going left to right and time coming in the opposite direction. So, if the clock reads 180746***135205 it means that it is 6:07 P.M. (18 hours/07 minutes/46 seconds since midnight) and that there are 5 hours/52 minutes/13 seconds remaining until midnight. The three numbers in between are a blur of moving numbers. It is like a digital hourglass.

Tonight is the night we all set our clocks ahead an hour in observance of the strange springtime ritual known as Daylight Saving Time. Until last year Daylight time began on the first Sunday in April. Thanks to the Energy Policy Act of 2005, DST now begins on the second Sunday in March and lasts until the first weekend in November. more ›