I know that several subway lines run up to the Bronx, but it seems one of their representatives in the City Council has never ridden on one before. As talk about providing cell service in subway stations seems to be turning into action, one of our City Councilmen prove that he has no idea what he is talking about.
From The Daily News:
City Council members urged the MTA Thursday to create "quiet cars" on subways so riders can avoid listening to other straphangers yammer on cell phones after stations are wired.
Councilman Oliver Koppell (D-Bronx) noted "long-haul" rail lines already use the "quiet cars."
"You may say, 'People won't listen.' But there's a tendency for self-policing in that system," Koppell said at a Council hearing.
Koppell said straphangers would have to make sure the rules are enforced on the "quiet cars."
"So, if you have a quiet car ... and someone gets on and starts talking on the cell phone, other passengers will say, 'This is a quiet car, please turn off the cell phone,'" Koppell said. "Generally, that works."
I question if Koppell has ever been a straphanger before. Unless you ride the subway in the middle of the night, there is no such thing as a "quiet car." Cars that get jammed pack are full of noisy riders, which is why I keep my iPod handy when transversing the city. No one is going to "self-enforce" these rules either, as the Gothamist notes, people do not show too much courtesy when it comes to giving seats up for women with children or the elderly.
If people started using their phones while riding, it would barely add to the decibel noise down there. Of course, if he had actually read about the proposal, he would have noticed that cell service is only being talked about in stations, not in the tunnels. Therefore, there is no way to enforce a "quiet car" if you do not get reception anyways. As for riding above ground out in the boroughs, people use their phones whenever and wherever they please, no one cares if someone is talking on the phone, as people talk amongst themselves while riding.
Councilman Koppell seriously needs to get a clue about how things work down underground.
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