Rules of the Subway

Old Jun 29th, 2016, 10:17 PM
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Rules of the Subway

Since the summer is coming and many are planning their Thanksgiving and Christmas here are my
Rules of the Subway, which I have not posted in a while:

The NYC subway system is an amalgam of lines that were once privately owned and were purchased by the government to unite them. This explains why there is duplication in many areas and no trains in other areas. The line that King Kong destroyed is now underground.

With a few exceptions the subways in Manhattan run north/south. Almost all, except those that go to the Bronx, will eventually make a turn into Brooklyn or Queens. The three Manhattan trains that only run east/west are:

The shuttle that runs between Times Square and Grand Central:
The 7 line which starts at the newest station 34th Street Hudson Yards and in Manhattan also stops at Times Square,5th Ave and Grand Central and goes eventually goes to Flushing, Queens;
And the L train that runs along 14th street.

Even though a Metrocard is used for entry, no NY’er calls the subway the Metro, Tube, or Underground. It is either called the subway or the train.

Do not use or ask for a subway line using the colors on the map. NY’ers will have no idea what your talking about. NY’ers either use the letter or the number. Say, “Can you tell where to get the “R” train or the “E” train. There are few exceptions. NY’ers refer to the 4 or 5 as the Lex (Lexington Avenue) Express and the 6 as the Lex Local. And the train from Grand Central to Times Square is called the Shuttle.

There are green and red globes at the entrance to many stations. Green supposedly means open all the time and red means sometimes. Some entrances have mechanical card readers at those entrances without token booths. But red is usually open during week day business hours. Got that.

Transfers occur at many stations. Some transfers are across the platform, others on another level, while others are an interminable walk through corridors which vary from extremely crowded to ill light and very lonely. The main transfers are usually madhouses at all times.

The subway runs all day, all night every day including Christmas, Yom Kippur, and Ramadan. If you are lucky there will be more trains during rush hour.

The PA systems have gotten better. There is a male voice for instructions and advisements and a female voice for station stops. Do not expect an explanation regarding delays. And if they do make an announcement, do not necessarily believe them.

On the newer trains there is also an electronic linear map showing the line and stops. They are usually right. There are, however, large lit arrows that show the general direction and they are often pointing in the wrong direction.

If you miss your stop, you will not die, even if you wind in Brooklyn, Queens, or the Bronx. Well maybe the Bronx. Just get off at the next stop but there is the rub. Not every stop has a corridor which connects trains in both directions so you may have to exit, go upstairs, cross the street, descend again and pay another fare. Although there are major exceptions, this is often true on the local lines where are there are few transfers.

There are basically two types of trains, expresses and locals. Expresses stop at designated stops while locals stop at every station. There are times when the local is actually faster. When there is a problem, locals can run on the express tracks and vice versa. Sometimes during extenuating circumstances stations will be skipped. If you are lucky an announcement will be made. (See above rule regarding PA announcements.) And during those times you might be standing on a platform watching a train pass you by. If a train blows its whistle as it enters the station, it often means it ain’t stopping.

Many students take the subway to school. Many travel as hordes when school lets out. 99.9% of the kids are just being kids. Do not be afraid. As I get older, I realize how frightening we were as kids to adults.

A serious note: Unfortunately, the subway system is not designed for the disabled. All stations have stairs and the few that have escalators or elevators are unreliable.


MetroCards
Never ask how to use the machines that dispense MetroCards beforehand. Always stand in front of the machine as long as possible so a line can grow behind you. Hint to tourists: If the person has not moved their hands in fifteen minutes, get on another line.

Always crowd the person in front of you at the turnstile. Not every turnstile works and pirouettes can occur.

The MetroCard turnstile swipe is an art form. Sometimes the first swipe will not work. And do not be surprised that after multiple swipes, if you are charged for two trips.

You can get a MetroCard at almost all subway entrances, especially at the larger stations. Some entrances just have turnstiles. You cannot get one on a bus, even though you need one or exact fare. Currently the fare is $2.75 plus $1 for the card itself, no matter the distance and you can transfer to one bus up to two hours from entering the subway.

Of course, all Metrocards have restrictions since they issued by a bureaucracy.

Others can tell you about the other multiple use cards.

Getting Directions
New Yorkers who barely know their name know the subway lines in Manhattan but few know the subway in the boroughs, other than the one where they live. Always ask for directions, NY’ers are always proud to display their subway knowledge. Conversely, NY’ers only know the bus lines they use and have no clue where the other buses go.

Above each platform are signs that identify the trains which will stop at the station and the general direction. Do not be alarmed that the signs say, Brooklyn Queens, or the Bronx, it is the general direction. Downtown means south and uptown means north, well you get the drift.

There are no subway maps above ground. So you will have to descend to into a station to read one.

Riding the Rails

Entering the train can be a bit of free for all. The victory goes to the swift. If you dawdle people will push in front and not many will say things like “Excuse me Sir/Madam, but may I get ahead of you.” At rush hours, people will push from behind and you can be carried with the tide. If you have children, hold their hands and make plans if you get split up. I do this with adults, who so not know the train if someone should miss their stop. Of course there are cell phones but not all stations have service underground, although there is more and more free WIFI

Do not stare at people. This is not a joke. It can be interpreted as impolite or worse.

Do not emulate NY’ers who:
1. Lean on the pole so no one else can hold on. It has been known to hold the pole in a certain way so that the knuckles of one’s hand jab the back of the slob.
2. Transport their refrigerator during rush hours. People carry all sorts of objects all the time.
3. Read the New York Times spread open, with their splayed open taking up two seats. (This is a male specialty.)
4. Stand with your bike and take up the room of six people. I will never understand, if you have a bike, why you are taking the train. I would, however, like to borrow their helmet sometimes.
5. Don’t shower and wear muscle shirts.
6. The subway is not your living room, move your butt to the wall if you want to speak on the phone.


You can do just about anything in NYC but do not block a subway car door. When the train stops, the doors open, and you are blocking them there are many choices: make yourself small, get off the train so there is room and then get back on, move to the center, or be prepared to be bounced and cursed. It is prime spot to stand, own it with pride.

Do not say to your fellow passenger, this is like being in a sardine can. We have probably heard that before.

There will be people selling candy, others God. It is your choice to engage them in conversation.

Getting off

It is important to know the stop before as it is to know the stop you need. The stop before warn all your friends and relatives. Know which side the doors will open. Most doors on an express open on the right. On the local trains, the doors usually open on the right on local stops and on the left on express stops. This is a rule of thumb.

Another rule of thumb regards people who do not move out of the way. Say, “Excuse me,” loudly. If they do not move after the second, “Excuse me,” you have my permission to knock them over.
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Old Jun 30th, 2016, 02:22 AM
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Well done and so true IME.
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Old Jun 30th, 2016, 05:18 AM
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One thing I find interesting - it seems people from NYC are born with an innate sense of where north / south is. I never thought about this in my home town, but in new cities I have no idea. I have now downloaded a compass on my phone!

In addition to IDH's advice above, for other newbies like myself, this beginner's guide should also help:
http://www.nycsubwayguide.com/subway/
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Old Jun 30th, 2016, 07:32 AM
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>>> Do not use or ask for a subway line using the colors on the map. NY’ers will have no idea what your talking about. >>>

So true! A bunch of kids once asked me where the Green line was, and like you said, I had no idea what they were talking about. I've since learned it's the IRT.

IMD, I'm not familiar with you but your writing style and humor remind me of another poster from NY, whom we haven't heard from in a long while. Hmmmm.....
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Old Jun 30th, 2016, 07:44 AM
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Panecott-SHHHHHHHHHH.
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Old Jun 30th, 2016, 07:53 AM
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My fingers are sealed.
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Old Jun 30th, 2016, 08:00 AM
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no problem, as long as you did not make a public statement, we're good.
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Old Jun 30th, 2016, 09:04 AM
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Yup, one excuse me as a warning. Second comes with a push. And some of us can use f=ma to good effect.
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Old Jun 30th, 2016, 09:21 AM
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Tip the performers on the subway car? Or not?
Are they legal? Or not? (Pretty entertaining though, for those of us from places where the performers stay on the platform to do their busking.)
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Old Jun 30th, 2016, 09:39 AM
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I tipped the ones in our car, and saw a few people who looked like natives tip them, too. They were pretty good! Typical NYC: the out of work musicians are better than most I hear in my town (I guess they may not be out of work, anyway. Just moonlighting.)

Also heard a quite fun duo on the platform in one station, train came before I could throw a few bucks in their box.

<If you miss your stop, you will not die, even if you wind in Brooklyn, Queens, or the Bronx. >
This is an excellent point. I found the subway fairly easy to navigate, although the signage left a lot to be desired. But having ridden public transportation in loads of cities, I have a high tolerance for feeling confused and for muddling through.

The apps that are now available were very helpful, essential even, I'd say. The maps posted inside the stations were sometimes hard to read.

Lastly, our recent experience of the subway was that it was unremarkable: no one pushed or was rude or unpleasant in any way. There was a mix of people, many tourists but locals, too, of course, buskers, a couple of crazy people, and so on. We never felt out of place, is my point, even when we looked a bit bewildered.
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Old Jun 30th, 2016, 09:49 AM
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Another note about apps: you can use them to study your route in advance and thereby avoid being totally confused. I wish I could recall which one we used, but I bet they're all decent. Free, of course.
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Old Jun 30th, 2016, 10:01 AM
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Three thoughts,

If a street musician elevates your mood tip them.

No matter how many times I visit Manhattan, I always take the wrong exit and do 360 degree spins as if I was in an Alfred Hitchcock movie.

All those paragraphs and no mention of the Mole People and Taggers?
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Old Jun 30th, 2016, 10:36 AM
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great tips. Love the NYC subway system. Takes you everywhere. We also use a free app on the subway system. Wouldn't travel to NYC without it. Good to plan your trip b4 hand so you don't have to spend more time than necessary underground!
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Old Jun 30th, 2016, 10:42 AM
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>>> Tip the performers on the subway car? Or not?
Are they legal? >>>

If you enjoy the performance, by all means, tip them. If not, don't tip.

Performers are legal as far as I know, however, panhandlers are not - but that doesn't stop them.
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Old Jun 30th, 2016, 11:05 AM
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The performers on the platforms are licensed by the city; they have to go through auditions before being approved and are then assigned specific platforms. Fell free to give a $1 or 2 if you like the performance.

Those working the cars are not official and may be anything from Julliard students trying to make some pocket change to raving (literally) lunatics. If the music is good you can tip if you want but don't feel obliged. If you feel anything at all "off" about those selling things or proselytising do NOT make eye contact and if they seem like a problem move to another part of the car - or a different car at the next stop. NEVER engage them - since you have no idea of their mental status.

Note that the latter is true of panhandlers on the street - feel perfectly free to look right through them and walk past as quickly as you can. This is NOT rude. It is how 9 million people get along in a small space, allowing space for those who are unbalanced to some degree.

And the Mole People are not in the subways - everyone knows they live in the deeper levels of the tunnels under Grand Central.
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Old Jun 30th, 2016, 11:12 AM
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Fun to read, but:

Of course, all Metrocards have restrictions since they issued by a bureaucracy.

I wonder what entity might issue a Metrocard that has no restrictions, and what its cost would be.

HTtY
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Old Jun 30th, 2016, 11:30 AM
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One thing that was not mentioned is that while a subway map shows how things are supposed to operate Monday thru Friday (there us a grid at the upper right of the map that shows late night and weekend changes), everything can go for naught on the weekend.

On weekends the MTA does construction and repairs to the system. That means that some lines/routes can be changed (sometimes drastically)by rerouting over other lines, shortened and replaced by buses on the street or split into sections.

Example - this weekend (July 1-4), the A and C trains will be rerouted over the F line between Manhattan and Brooklyn. This is because the tunnel used by the A and C trains was badly damaged in Hurricane Sandy. Rather than closing the tunnel for a long period (as they did with the R train tunnel for 18 months), it was decided, since they can reroute trains, to do as much work on the weekends for as long as it takes.

Another example - Uptown D trains are running on the A line (8th Av) between West 4th St and 59th St. The downtown D train is running along 6th Av as normal.

There are posters at the turnstile area (which no one looks at), on station platforms (which no one looks at) and on trains (which, of course, no one looks at).

I recall a recent incident in which I got off a D train at the 7th Av station and saw people across the platform waiting for E train (which was being rerouted on the F line between Queens and Manhattan that weekend. There were plenty of signs on the station support pillars and many were looking directly at them but it didn't sink in. Being the nice guy that I am (yes I am a NYer) I advised all the people waiting that they were waiting for a train that wasn't coming.

The MTA does have a webpage detailing service changes: http://web.mta.info/service/ (select Subways on this page and then on the next page change the date as needed but keep All Routes as the selection criteria).

My advice when using the subway - Look at the posters in the turnstile area, look at any signs posted in the station and above all----

Take the earbuds out of you ears, take headphones off your head - you might be missing an important announcement about train service. PAY ATTENTION when riding the subway.
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Old Jun 30th, 2016, 11:34 AM
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A friend of mine was in New York last weekend and reported just this--that some service change took effect without notice (I know, there probably was some) and she had to get off one train and ride back a few stops in order to catch a different line.

I think the moral of the story is that it wasn't the end of the world, just annoying.
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Old Jun 30th, 2016, 11:34 AM
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Are you a tagger? Otherwise how would you and everyone know where the Mole People live? Like Jews, they wander.
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Old Jun 30th, 2016, 01:22 PM
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Thanks for all the additional tips.

_____________________________________
The Mole people have decided to put spicy chocolate on chicken and change their brand and image.

_____________

The only performers I do not like are the ones who use the pole, not to strip but to do acrobatics. The quarters are too close.
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