cartography

One of the premises of this blog – that is, one of the things that is assumed upon the reading of this blog is that it is absurd that there should be irregularities in train service more than 30 percent of the time you ride the train. I began writing with the intent of simply logging the irregularities. It has turned into something more like a narrative. I am not upset about this, but it should be mentioned that I am not logging each and every incident of irregular service.

The other day, however, on the 1 train, on the way home after work a bit after rush hour, I had a bit of a long commute. The stated reason was that there was a signal malfunction at 72nd street. It was also stated that there was a stalled train at 72nd street. The consequence of this was that all 1 trains would be running express from 72nd to 96th street. The unstated consequence was that all 1 trains would be running at about 1 mile per hour until 72nd street. The reality of the situation crept up on everyone as they noticed the train’s decreased momentum, frequent stops between stations, and extended stays in stations, tempers began to flare and people began rolling their eyes, cursing under their breath and overall looking like emerging psychopaths. As for me, I questioned why a train stalled at 72nd would have meant decreased service at 28th. It seems like they had the logistics under control. Trains would go express from 72nd to 96th. Ok. So, maybe there would be a slight delay if there was a 1 train trying to cross over to the express track while a 2 or 3 was passing by. But a) that shouldn’t begin a chain of events that reverberates all the was back to 28th street, b) that chain of events should not include as much slowness and stopping as it did.

Of course, by the time the train got to 72nd street, everything had been solved, I guess, because we pulled into the local side of the platform just fine. Then, continued on locally as if nothing had ever happened. There were no more announcements, no more delays, etc. of course, we were about 10-15 minutes behind where we should have been, so I did not feel free, as a result, to let me concentration waver. Why should my concentration wavering have to do with anything? Well, I have been trained by past experience to expect, when there is the slightest delay in service, to have assorted stops skipped, and that these skipped stops might include 225th street. So, in anticipation of this announcement, I denied myself access to my portable music, thus decreasing the quality of my commute. Of course, just as I prepared for the worst, nothing happened. The train ran normal from 72nd to 225th (and presumably to 242nd) and I resisted the urge to feel lucky or good or thankful or anything like that. It is, of course, supposed to stop at 225th, so why feel any particular way about it?

Speaking of being supposed to stop at 225th, another annoying thing: In checking the ultimately depressing and standard-lowering posterboards of weekend service changes that have crept into every train station, this week does not acknowledge that the 1 train would be continuing its skipping of every stop north of 168th street over the weekends. On Monday and Tuesday, I was feeling ok about this. Perhaps they finished what they were doing? But by Wednesday, even though the posterboards weren’t changed, the 1 train began accumulating individualized posters claiming that for the next 2 weekends, service would not exist north of 168th street. It is the same poster that they have been using, except that they dates are changed. Why was this information not included on the original posterboard? Did they not know? Was it a spontaneous decision to continue the work they had started? And as always, why only put the next 2 weeks as the dates for the service obliteration? Are we supposed to believe, again, that in two weeks, everything will be fine? My challenge to the MTA is to be honest. Those posterboards are too print heavy, and most people are accustomed to getting information about train service from train maps – New York having an especially famous one. I say that if they know that service is going to be a certain way for a period of more than a few months, new maps should be produced to reflect those changes. On the New York subway map, the 1 train, for example, should officially be represented by a dashed (rather than solid) line north of 168th street, denoting contingent service. Having it on the map would make it official. Having it on that posterboard makes it seem not-that bad. Artists and cartographers should be at work on this.

Also, the next day, the downtown train stopped at 96th street and waited for a 3 train before taking off. The announcement cited “a scheduled adjustment” as the reason for the delay. What the hell is that?