New Countdown Clock Announcement on Lex Av

[Via Garibaldi 8]

Sitting on the at 96th, southbound with the doors open

 

"There is a..."

 

people stand up

 

"...downtown express train to Flatbush Avenue / Brooklyn College..."

 

people exit the car

 

"...six minutes away."

 

people find their seats again

 

It's seriously confusing.

Yes people have become used to the old announcement and now it's more annoying now than it is calming.  Maybe they changed it to keep people from peeking to look for a train? I see fewer people doing that now than in the past.  The problem is that the platforms are so packed now that you still have to stand near the edge if you want any sort of space.  The other thing that can be maddening is when they announce that a train is coming in a certain direction, but the announcement is cut off half way for another announcement.  I don't know if it's a bug or what but finish one announcement first before going into the other one.

[Lance]

It probably wouldn't be such a problem if these announcements were like that from the start, but to have them one way for about five years then switch up to this new style is quite confusing. And annoying if I do say so. People are quite used to hearing "there is <train> approaching the station" after hearing it for so long. Quite frankly, I don't understand why it was changed in the first place. These arbitrary changes to the announcements and various electronic signs seem to be made without any real reason other than "changing it up".

 

As for the interrupting announcements, the system is likely coded to play the announcements as soon as new data is loaded and not after the first announcement finishes. I don't mind it when it cuts off the standard PSAs, but it is kind of amusing when you hear "there is an uptown express-" "there is an uptown local..." when a and train pull into the station within seconds of each other.

[Via Garibaldi 8]

I find it annoying when they cut off train announcements for standard ones...

[checkmatechamp13]

There were a couple of times when the train conductor announced "Next express is 2 minutes away" as the train pulled in, just so people could make an informed decision without getting out, looking at the clock and deciding whether or not to stay on the local.

 

I'm trying to remember remember the old announcements vs. new ones

Old:

The next Uptown local train to VCP/242nd Street will arrive in 2 minutes.

There is an Uptown local train to VCP/242nd Street approaching this station. Please stand away from the platform edge.

 

New:

There is an Uptown local train to VCP/242nd Street 2 minutes away.

 

What do they say when the train is actually approaching?

[Via Garibaldi 8]

There were a couple of times when the train conductor announced "Next express is 2 minutes away" as the train pulled in, just so people could make an informed decision without getting out, looking at the clock and deciding whether or not to stay on the local.

 

I'm trying to remember remember the old announcements vs. new ones

Old:

The next Uptown local train to VCP/242nd Street will arrive in 2 minutes.

There is an Uptown local train to VCP/242nd Street approaching this station. Please stand away from the platform edge.

 

New:

There is an Uptown local train to VCP/242nd Street 2 minutes away.

 

What do they say when the train is actually approaching?

The issue is that they use the same exact announcement when a train is two minutes away vs. when a train is approaching, and it's confusing for that reason, since the new set up was only used when trains were approaching.  Now you have to listen to the announcement in its entirety, not to mention that trains often times come early, so suddenly you hear two or three minutes and then the train is right there a few seconds later (literally).  So much for having a few minutes to get to the platform. What baffles the hell out of me is how the countdown clocks work in the stations that have them, but Subway Time is almost unusable on the website.  It is next to impossible to see when a train will be arriving on the or lines overall, but especially during the rush.  You refresh and it just keeps saying "Data Currently Not Available".   

 

I will say that it is great to have this information because the delays seem to be constant.  One little delay and suddenly your commute goes from great to hell and I'm already thinking about how I can adjust my commute to get away from the hoards of crowds trying to pack on at each station.  Happened yesterday morning and this morning.  Suddenly trains were crawling, though the crowds weren't as bad as yesterday.  If they can't handle this weather now, God forbid what it will be like come summertime with the hot weather.  The signal problems and "investigations" have been ongoing for almost a week now.  This will likely be my last few days using the subway regularly before switching to Metro-North and the express bus for a while.  The rides in the mornings save a few days weren't terrible on the , but I don't foresee it being great come summertime. 

[MysteriousBtrain]

There were a couple of times when the train conductor announced "Next express is 2 minutes away" as the train pulled in, just so people could make an informed decision without getting out, looking at the clock and deciding whether or not to stay on the local.

 

I'm trying to remember remember the old announcements vs. new ones

Old:

The next Uptown local train to VCP/242nd Street will arrive in 2 minutes.

There is an Uptown local train to VCP/242nd Street approaching this station. Please stand away from the platform edge.

 

New:

There is an Uptown local train to VCP/242nd Street 2 minutes away.

 

What do they say when the train is actually approaching?

The approaching announcement is the same, which is one of the reasons it was stupid to change it in the first place.

[checkmatechamp13]

The issue is that they use the same exact announcement when a train is two minutes away vs. when a train is approaching, and it's confusing for that reason, since the new set up was only used when trains were approaching.  Now you have to listen to the announcement in its entirety, not to mention that trains often times come early, so suddenly you hear two or three minutes and then the train is right there a few seconds later (literally).  So much for having a few minutes to get to the platform. What baffles the hell out of me is how the countdown clocks work in the stations that have them, but Subway Time is almost unusable on the website.  It is next to impossible to see when a train will be arriving on the or lines overall, but especially during the rush.  You refresh and it just keeps saying "Data Currently Not Available".   

 

I will say that it is great to have this information because the delays seem to be constant.  One little delay and suddenly your commute goes from great to hell and I'm already thinking about how I can adjust my commute to get away from the hoards of crowds trying to pack on at each station.  Happened yesterday morning and this morning.  Suddenly trains were crawling, though the crowds weren't as bad as yesterday.  If they can't handle this weather now, God forbid what it will be like come summertime with the hot weather.  The signal problems and "investigations" have been ongoing for almost a week now.  This will likely be my last few days using the subway regularly before switching to Metro-North and the express bus for a while.  The rides in the mornings save a few days weren't terrible on the , but I don't foresee it being great come summertime. 

 

I originally thought it was just a problem with the cell service or something. I don't use a smartphone, but whenever I'm on the X17 I ask another passenger if they can check TrainTime for me (so I can decide between the and ), and for the past few weeks, it's been the same thing with multiple people's phones.

 

A friend of mine showed me this website that visually shows the locations of the trains. It's based off the TrainTime data, so I'm not sure if it's any better in terms of functioning when TrainTime is down, but it's worth a shot: http://www.livetrain.nyc/

 

Yeah, usually by the time the announcement says 2 minutes, you can see the headlights somewhere in the vicinity of the platform.

 

And the is usually fairly reliable for me (and the combined are usually reliable, though I'm sure separately is a different story, especially the ), but I usually go outside of rush, or in the reverse-peak. I mean, they're generally frequent which is good, but like you said, one signal problem and you're screwed.

 

The approaching announcement is the same, which is one of the reasons it was stupid to change it in the first place.

 

Damn, that's really annoying. I mean, granted, I usually just look at the actual sign, but when I'm too far away to see it, those announcements really help.

[Via Garibaldi 8]

I originally thought it was just a problem with the cell service or something. I don't use a smartphone, but whenever I'm on the X17 I ask another passenger if they can check TrainTime for me (so I can decide between the and ), and for the past few weeks, it's been the same thing with multiple people's phones.

 

A friend of mine showed me this website that visually shows the locations of the trains. It's based off the TrainTime data, so I'm not sure if it's any better in terms of functioning when TrainTime is down, but it's worth a shot: http://www.livetrain.nyc/

 

Yeah, usually by the time the announcement says 2 minutes, you can see the headlights somewhere in the vicinity of the platform.

 

And the is usually fairly reliable for me (and the combined are usually reliable, though I'm sure separately is a different story, especially the ), but I usually go outside of rush, or in the reverse-peak. I mean, they're generally frequent which is good, but like you said, one signal problem and you're screwed.

This livetrain.nyc website is amazing. It shows wayyyy more trains than SubwayTime, and it also can tell you the arrival time of that train at each stop it makes along the entire route. The only thing that isn't clear is how frequently it updates... I only tried it in Desktop format on my Android...

 

As for the reverse trains, they are frequent and fairly empty from what I've seen at 96th street.

[Lance]

I think there's something wrong with the MTA's site where it's not processing and/or updating the data for TrainTime. I don't know as coding is not my forte, but I wouldn't be surprised given their previous attempts at app creation. The data that gets sent to third-party apps like iTransNYC and the Live Train website are working properly.

 

Also, to answer a question, the data that gets fed to the countdown clocks in the stations is likely slightly different from what goes to TrainTime and other apps. It would explain some quirks that pop up on the apps that doesn't appear on the stations' displays.

[onthe1train]

On the subject of train time apps, I use BlipRail and it seems fairly reliable. No time tables, but the little icons are fun to watch.

[checkmatechamp13]

This livetrain.nyc website is amazing. It shows wayyyy more trains than SubwayTime, and it also can tell you the arrival time of that train at each stop it makes along the entire route. The only thing that isn't clear is how frequently it updates... I only tried it in Desktop format on my Android...

 

As for the reverse trains, they are frequent and fairly empty from what I've seen at 96th street.

 

If you zoom in really closely, you can see the trains visually moving (my friends and I were watching the locals and expresses race each other near certain stations). So I assume it's real-time or something really close (e.g. every 30 seconds like BusTime).

[Via Garibaldi 8]

If you zoom in really closely, you can see the trains visually moving (my friends and I were watching the locals and expresses race each other near certain stations). So I assume it's real-time or something really close (e.g. every 30 seconds like BusTime).

I used it yesterday traveling to a session. My train at 96th street was delayed but the app even seems to take that into account. It was even more accurate than the countdown clock at the station. What was funny was that the train was delayed thereafter, so we ran express skipping a few stops, which made no difference, as we still arrived later than we were supposed to. That makes me wonder if service will worsen when the gets more frequent service.

 

In any event, after this month, my subway rides will decline considerably, so I won't be able to play with these apps as much, but it's nice to know that they exist.

[Next Train Announcer]

I was just at 125th Street waiting for a train and noticed the male announcement voice was different when announcing when the next train will arrive.

 

 

Uh oh! Does this mean my voice is disappearing from the subways? I hope not. It's kinda cool going into the station and hearing yourself tell you when the next train will arrive. ;-)

[LegoBrickBreaker101]

Uh oh! Does this mean my voice is disappearing from the subways? I hope not. It's kinda cool going into the station and hearing yourself tell you when the next train will arrive. ;-)

 

Lol no your voice is staying, it's just the phrasing of the announcement itself that's changing.

 

Seriously though, what is the MTA doing?! First the abbreviated exterior signage, and now this? Just yesterday, I was waiting for a train when the announcement said, "There is a train to Woodlawn..." (I looked down the track waiting to see if the train was coming, even though I just checked 30 seconds ago) "... 2 minutes away."

 

If the MTA is trying to troll their riders, they're doing a good job at it.

[Around the Horn]

Took the yesterday from 72 Street and the new announcements are VERY annoying. It s like its trolling you every time it makes an announcement.

 

 

Uh oh! Does this mean my voice is disappearing from the subways? I hope not. It's kinda cool going into the station and hearing yourself tell you when the next train will arrive. ;-)

They just spliced the "There is an x train to y " and the "x minutes away" announcements. Its still your voice (at 72 Street at least- I haven't been to any other numbered line stations since they made the change)

[Via Garibaldi 8]

Took the yesterday from 72 Street and the new announcements are VERY annoying. It s like its trolling you every time it makes an announcement.

 

 

They just spliced the "There is an x train to y " and the "x minutes away" announcements. Its still your voice (at 72 Street at least- I haven't been to any other numbered line stations since they made the change)

lol... I took the train yesterday from the BxM2 at 57th & 7th and got a kick out of the chick announcing the stops.  She sounds like she's extremely happy from something... A little 420 perhaps... 

 

This morning though was when the announcements on the really had me anxious.  I got the BxM2 down to the Upper West Side, stopped at one of my coffee spots, and then strolled over to get the M66 to the East Side for another express bus, only to find out that the bus was on detour, so I immediately rush over to the 66th street subway station.  Every time I heard an announcement, I kept thinking well maybe the train will come earlier than the wait time posted.  It happened for the Southbound train, but not the Northbound train of course (the one I needed).   In my panic, I totally forgot about livetrain.nyc.  The arrival times are spot on.  I wound up getting off at 86th and Broadway and getting the M86 crosstown and made my express bus.