(From Gothamist's Subway Etiquette Archival Photos)
In October, we asked the MTA if they would ever consider a subway etiquette campaign. After all, there used to be posters on the trains calling out poor behavior like door blocking and seat hogging—if we had them in the 1940s, '50s, and '60s, why not now?
At the time we were told by spokesperson Adam Lisberg that it probably wouldn't effect change—"You can go back in history and see old examples of etiquette posters here and elsewhere. People literally never learn. If systems all over the world have been trying and failing to curb bad behavior for decades, why do we think we would suddenly discover the magic bullet to get people to change?" Well, they decided to give it a shot anyway—a month later the MTA announced a subway etiquette campaign which would target a few of the more offensive behaviors, like manspreading, and this week they've revealed some of the artwork that's going to shame shame shame these bad mannered subway riders.
Their "Courtesy Counts" campaign (full name: "Courtesy Counts, Manners Make a Better Ride") will urge customers to please:
• “Step Aside to Let Others Off First”
• “Keep Your Stuff to Yourself”
• “Take Your Pack Off Your Back”
• “Offer Your Seat to an Elderly, Disabled, or Pregnant Person”
• “Take Your Litter Off With You”
• “Keep the Sound Down”
• “Pole Are For Your Safety, Not Your Latest Routine”
• “Clipping? Primping?”
• “Don’t be a Pole Hog”
• “It’s a Subway Car Not a Dining Car”
• “Blocking Doors”
• “Dude…..Stop the Spread, Please”
The messages will be delivered via 46-inch or 72-inch placards, which will be installed on 2,600 subway cars starting in January. They also plan to add subway car announcements to the campaign, and roll out "additional campaigns for buses and both the Long Island Rail Road and Metro-North Railroad." Maybe they should also show our educational film about manspreading:
"Manspreading"by Gothamist
