[Dan416]

I did like that the London underground tells you which side the doors will be opening on and the major attractions at certain stops.

I agree with Mapleson on this one. More information is better than too little.

 

[gweed123]

How many people are getting on the subway to go to the Bata Shoe Museum without already knowing where they have to get off? If you're thinking about paid promotion that is completely different if we want to help tourists use the subway to get to the Bata Shoe Museum or other attractions there should besigns at thedowntow station entrances that direct them which direction to travel and what station to get off at.

But the thing is not everyone is transit savvy, so just having them look at a map when they get on may not be enough. Spend the extra two seconds and put that reminder in there.

 

[reaperexpress]

When I was in London, I thought the announcements were cool saying things like "this is Picadilly Circus station. Change here for the Picadilly Line". But maybe it was the accent. It can be useful to announce things that are not intuitive, such as the fact that it's always faster to change at St. George than Spadina, even when you're going from the Spadina line to the Bloor line west. This could be done by simply stating "change here for the University-Spadina line" at St. George but not at Spadina.

Here's a video I found with announcements explaining a cross-platform interchange. It is a bit wordy, but cross-platform interchanges are a bit unconventional so it's good to make it clear what's happening.

[video=youtube;1j_nNIziqEY]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1j_nNIziqEY[/video]
At the end of the video, the train leaves the station before the announcement is even finished.

 

[EnviroTO]

I guess you're happy when the train stops mid-tunnel and there isn't a single announcement about delays? Wouldn't want the reasons to be descritive, right?

Personally I don't care why the train is stopped mid-tunnel. Nothing they can tell me at that point is going to change anything. Any information they provide should be actionable. Some key connections to other subway lines or GO and maybe one or two landmarks might be of value. Mentioning the word station and the name of the station multiple times, especially given all the visual cues, seems redundant.

On departure from previous station: "The next stop is St.George station. Exit at St.George for the Bloor-Danforth subway and the Bata Shoe Museum."
On approach: "Arriving at St.George station."

The mind the gap and stand clear of the doors announcements are a waste. There is a bright yellow line along the platform... what do people think it is there for? Maybe the turnstiles should hold people back until they read the platform safety instructions and have them click an acceptance button before letting them continue lest they skateboard down the railing and over the platform, onto the tracks, and then jump onto the electric rail. What if they arrive on the platform right after the announcement... they might have to wait another 5 minutes before the guy tells people they are supposed to wait behind the yellow line. Oh, there is a flashing yellow light above the door and woah, the gap between the red doors is getting smaller. What can this mean?

 

[Mapleson]

Well I guess we have to chalk it up to personal preference then. Personally, if I'm a tourist or even just visiting a city and wandering aimlessly, I'm going to consult a map/transit map prior to going out and not relying on the subway train to tell me where I am.

Also, you said Montevideo -- Uruguay? Is that your background? If so, congratulations!

Yep, that's the one. I've had a very varied life. I'm a first generation British Canadian, and I've worked around the world (Panama, Honduras, Nicaragua, Uruguay, India, England, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Turkmenistan, Georgia, US, Canada) in either mining or transport engineering. I've been very privledged in my 30 years, but it keeps me open minded that just because I think something is a good way to do things, it doesn't mean that other people don't also have good reasons for doing things in a different way.

How many people are getting on the subway to go to the Bata Shoe Museum without already knowing where they have to get off? If you're thinking about paid promotion that is completely different if we want to help tourists use the subway to get to the Bata Shoe Museum or other attractions there should be signed at the downtown station entrances that direct them which direction to travel and what station to get off at.

I'm all for attractions paying a surcharge to be included in the station information, as they should recoup their costs in increased attendance, and if they don't then it's just ineffective advertising, and should be dropped for everyone's benefit. I used the Bata Shoe Museum as an example of a Toronto attraction that might attract more tourists and citizens if they knew that it existed and where it is. It's the extreme example just to give the sample text a station, attraction, and second subway line. Not too many combos of those three on our system.

Personally I don't care why the train is stopped mid-tunnel. Nothing they can tell me at that point is going to change anything.

I don't mind personally either, but I do know many individuals with anxiety disorders who either avoid the TTC completely or tend to have panic attacks with unannounced stoppages, which just compound the wait. I think of it as in the same field as a pilot telling you that there will be a "short delay" before they start to taxi to the runway. It doesn't change things, but it keeps you informed and removes the fear of the unknown.

Any information they provide should be actionable. Some key connections to other subway lines or GO and maybe one or two landmarks might be of value. Mentioning the word station and the name of the station multiple times, especially given all the visual cues, seems redundant.

On departure from previous station: "The next stop is St.George station. Exit at St.George for the Bloor-Danforth subway and the Bata Shoe Museum."
On approach: "Arriving at St.George station.

I agree that the visual cues reduce the need for redundant naming, but I don't see them having one set of announcements for the TR trainsets and another for the legacy models. I'd support this wording.

 

[Jonny5]

But the thing is not everyone is transit savvy, so just having them look at a map when they get on may not be enough. Spend the extra two seconds and put that reminder in there.

Transit Savvy? Isn't that like knowing the difference between an H5 and an H6?

No tourist is going to board the subway without already knowing where to get off. Otherwise they would just be riding around hoping to find it by chance. They only need to see a sign at the station fare area that tells them "attraction X is this direction at this station."

I don't care if it's just a quick announcement. No more announcements!

The "Caution: Coffee is hot" crowd that needs to be led around on a rope and told where to go will stick to the tour buses anyways.

EDIT: I am prepared to accept this has reached the "agree to disagree" point.

 

[Mapleson]

No tourist is going to board the subway without already knowing where to get off. Otherwise they would just be riding around hoping to find it by chance. They only need to see a sign at the station fare area that tells them "attraction X is this direction at this station."

I'm assuming part of the difference is in how we each act as tourists. I like to explore cities, so I'll hop on public transit without a destination in mind. If I see something interesting while enroute, and I don't have a deadline, I'll stop and check it out then and there. I'm guessing you are more of an 'attraction' tourist where you set out from a homebase to do a particular activity with more than a general plan to see some sights.

I think a good amount of the overprotective messaging in Canada is a culture leak from the US. When you can sucessfully sue someone for half a million dollars for getting stuck in their garage after breaking into their home, people are much more likely to try to take advantage of any minute slip. Like the deathrow inmate suing for mental anguish over a broken cookie. We don't have the same tort law up here, but we seem to be gaining the too-dumb-to-think warning mentality.

I'd say we should just let them all kill/injure theirselves, but they'll probably slow the TTC down doing it.

 

[tgam]

I think a good amount of the overprotective messaging in Canada is a culture leak from the US. When you can sucessfully sue someone for half a million dollars for getting stuck in their garage after breaking into their home, people are much more likely to try to take advantage of any minute slip.

According to Snopes, the garage burglar litigant story is fake:

http://www.snopes.com/legal/lawsuits.asp

 

[Agram]

While probably a little more complicated, isn't there a way to detach the cars?

Yes you can and it takes a few hours.....but then what would you do with them?

 

[Agram]

I'm sure some of you are aware of the Total Recall movie that is being filmed on the streets of Toronto

But did you know one of our H4 trains will be in it,

 

[M II A II R II K]

Probably at Lower Bay too.

 

[Mapleson]

According to Snopes, the garage burglar litigant story is fake:

http://www.snopes.com/legal/lawsuits.asp

The instance might not have been verified, but it's a placeholder for a false imprisonment tort.

In Taylor v. Johnson, 796 So.2d 11, a Louisiana pharmacist and his pharmacy were found liable by a trial court for false imprisonment. They stalled for time and instructed a patient to wait while simultaneously and without the patient's knowledge calling the police. The pharmacist was suspicious of the patient's prescription. While the patient was in prison, the police verified with her doctor that the prescription was authentic and meant for her. She sued the pharmacy and its employees and received $20,000 damages.

My high school American History teacher's daughter was sued by a burglar for hitting him with a frying pan and breaking his wrist.

 

[EnviroTO]

My high school American History teacher's daughter was sued by a burglar for hitting him with a frying pan and breaking his wrist.

I don't get that. The whole idea behind being able to have a gun in the US is for self-defense and everyone seems to believe that if someone comes on your property and you feel threatened you are allowed to defend yourself. If that is not the case what the hell are Americans thinking? A burglar's family who gets shot on someones property could sue for a life of lost family income?

 

[JoeParez]

I was heading down to St. Mike's Hospital for an appointment yesterday; but I had to make a quick stop at my sisters house on Ossington and as my T1 rumbled into St. George going southbound and I go out to transfer; I faintly hear a train coming in going northbound... it was the Toronto Rocket. I said "F this, I'm going to ride back to St. Clair West" and that's what I did! (now that I think of it, I could've taken it to Eglinton West and picked up the Ossington bus from there!) Haha, I wasn't late for any of my appointments though.

I just think it's a wonderful train. The white interior is a bonus as it "feels" brighter all the time. I sat right at the back and watched the articulation, it's like being on a wider and longer ALRV streetcar.

The strange thing about it is how un-TTC subway train it is; I'm used to the big side panels by the doors and the two window layout and the "dankness". I honestly felt I was in a different city. I love it and I can't wait for the others to be on the line.

Also, I saw it once sitting at Wilson and thought "it looks nothing like a New York train" --- when it's parked in a station; it looks exactly like one!

 

[junctionist]

Also, I saw it once sitting at Wilson and thought "it looks nothing like a New York train" --- when it's parked in a station; it looks exactly like one!

Yes, the new design is mostly clean but bland like a New York train.