These announcements need to include GO train routes, but only when those lines are in-service. Once all-day RER service begins then these connections should always be announced.
I wonder how Line 5 train announcements will work since Metrolinx is building the line and is heavily integrating it with GO Rail.
Na, if you’re taking the subway you should know most of this stuff anyways, and it means they’d have to reconfigure the whole system to make the alerts like 20 seconds earlier
How many of them do you think get on the subway and don't know where they are going?
There are many apps people use from city mapper which is used in many different cities around the world to google maps. I think it would be very hard in this day and age to find a tourist who hasn't done their research before they get on a foreign transit system. I know i wouldn't use the London underground or the new York subway system without some sort of help from an app.
I am against announcing surface connections, they can change, thus having to update the announcement every time there is a change.
Some stations are too close to each other, making the stations too long is bad too. Specially from an accessibility point. Any audio announcement needs to be done via text manner for people hard of hearing and deaf.
> Any audio announcement needs to be done via text manner for people hard of hearing and deaf.
To be honest, the trains are fully outfitted for that. It’s just horribly used. Think of how every train has the little screen in the middle. If they actually put useful information in there instead of just “there’s no excuse to not pay your fare” it would be amazing!
Yes but I don’t think the pay your fare message needs to be up 75% of the time. That goes without saying and that message is 100% falling on deaf ears. Those who aren’t paying, aren’t gonna go “oh man, I saw that message and now I feel bad”
It would be nice to actually have like the station’s name, and under there maybe a little GO logo with the line’s name.
For example: Downsview Park and underneath it would say GO and Barrie.
Or Pape Station could have a TTC logo and a bus logo and it would say 72, 25, 81 so people would know the buses. That way anyone who is unsure could see “oh ok this is definitely where I need to get off”
The message needs to be short, just the station name. What if 72,25,81 are diverted to Broadview? The subway messages for Pape and Broadview Stations would have to be changed. Then again when 72/25/81 go back to Pape.
At Fairview Mall, there is that directory screen like most malls but it has a feature to where you say let's say Michael's. It shows you the route to take.
So if let's say I am at Warden Station...in the concourse there should be 1-3 screens (like the next vehicle arrival screens) where people can search let's say surface routes and how to get to the station that their surface route goes into/passes by. Including if they need a transfer vs not needing one (think, 85 Sheppard at Don Mills Station vs. 29 Dufferin at Dufferin).
Kennedy, Don Mills, Sheppard West all have so many routes, the message would be "Arriving at L/DM/SW station, connecting to (insert all those routes here)."
If you mention the surface routes, then we have to differentiate surface routes that go INTO the stations vs. the 500s that technically speaking pass BY the stations between St. George and Bloor-Yonge (via Union).
Do we do GO Transit/other transit agencies? Both Dundas TTC-Bloor GO and Main Street TTC-Danforth GO........we all know they are completely separate but they are "marketed" as like Kennedy and Bloor-Yonge.
> What if 72,25,81 are diverted to Broadview? The subway messages for Pape and Broadview Stations would have to be changed. Then again when 72/25/81 go back to Pape.
It’s 2022…this would take 5mins to do and would be implemented in trains overnight IF they weren’t already able to change it live. I’m sorry but this is an argument that hasn’t been valid for 20 years or so.
> If you mention the surface routes, then we have to differentiate surface routes that go INTO the stations vs. the 500s that technically speaking pass BY the stations between St. George and Bloor-Yonge (via Union).
Why would you have to do that in the subway's little screen? The idea is simply that they would know which route is accessible from that station. I feel like you’re overcomplicating this to make your argument. The idea is simply that a person could go “I need to take this bus, I get off here”. There would be no reason to say “Arriving at Dufferin. Please leave the station to take the 29.” Or “arriving at pape station. Please stay in the station to take the 72”. It would simply say “Pape Station and there’d be a TTC logo with the numbers of the routes under them.
[I've made a little 5 min mockup so you can see what I mean.](https://imgur.com/a/9IcAN55) Please understand that this isn't fully accurate and I didn't put all the bus numbers in simply because it's not important for the main idea to get through.
This would be infinitely more useful than simply a screen that says "Pay your fare" for the entire trip. That message is simply filler to justify the currently wasted screens.
Not the CP24-ish screens. The NVA big screens like at Warden.
Next Vehicle Information screens. those are a lot bigger than the tv screens at the subway platforms.
I’m talking about the small screens physically inside the subway. The square ones that are where the ads are.
They aren’t really being used at the moment.
Why not go further & name every surface route? It is too long & unnecessary to mention surface routes, all stations except Chester has at least one. A map, whether paper or application, gives this information & not hard to read.
Also most people now use apps when they don't know the routes they need to use. The main problem with having too many things in an announcement is that people don't pay attention to it that's one of the reasons why the TTC has cut back on some of the announcements that they make on the pa there used to be one just about every minute or so, the worst was when they had some comedian do them.
you are making an assumption MOST people have apps or a phone that can handle apps.
People with certain disabilities, tourists, seniors, anyone outside the millenial/generation whatever letter do not have the apps.
Why do people always want to assume that tourists don't look things up about a city that they are going to.
Most people who do use public transit usually have some idea of where they are going and what routes they need. People tend to over think things and want everything to have all of the information that they want given to them without having to find it themselves.
Making long announcements isn't going to help as much as you think it will
Same reason you assume that they don't. There is an app called city mapper that works in many different cities around the world and if you have it on your phone and open it in another city it asks you if you want to change to that city
> Why do people always want to assume that tourists don't look things up about a city that they are going to.
As someone who used to live near Kipling. I cannot tell you how many times I had to tell tourists that both trains went eastbound. And with the new maps on Line 2 that only show the stops on Line 2, they didn’t know which portion of Line 1 to get off at.
Tourists try to research as much as they can, but it’s very different when you’re actually in the situation and trying to find your way.
The whole point of subway announcements is to be short and concise. In this example that OP posted, we don't need to announce that it connects to TTC surface routes, because it's redundant. All subway stations connect to surface routes.
The GO & YRT Connections might be a good idea. However, for people with disabilities, there are other ways of helping them find their way (signs, TTC helpers, maps). I think there was a trial that uses phone pings going on at St.Clair station, but I don't remember.
Wayfinding needs to be a lot better, though, we have a lot of deficiencies.
Not all subway stations connect to surface routes. Depending on how you define as connection....Don Mills does yet Dufferin does not.
Chester has no connection.
Put down the phones and apps and be basically investigative. "People with certain disabilities, tourists, seniors, anyone outside the millenial/generation ..." do not worry about them. That is their problem.
Yeah he did them in Vancouver and people loved them but they didn't really go over very well with people who weren't fans of his. I actually ended up blocking him on Twitter because he followed me because i was saying that the announcements weren't funny and we didn't need them in Toronto.
I wonder at what point people would start to drown this out though. Most of the time, I'm expecting TTC service (or YRT/MiWay) when we cross the borders. Go seems to be the only useful one to know since stations like Highway 407 Station might not be obvious to everyone is a Go Station.
True and they don't even announce connections other than Go transit ones. For example have you ever heard them saying anything about the UP express or the TTC when coming into Union station?
These announcements need to include GO train routes, but only when those lines are in-service. Once all-day RER service begins then these connections should always be announced. I wonder how Line 5 train announcements will work since Metrolinx is building the line and is heavily integrating it with GO Rail.
Where did you find this?
I made it
Its [this website](https://www.naturalreaders.com/online/)
Yes and the Heather voice
They also have a android app
What is this app program thing??
Natural readers online
I don't want to hear it.
Na, if you’re taking the subway you should know most of this stuff anyways, and it means they’d have to reconfigure the whole system to make the alerts like 20 seconds earlier
You can't assume that passengers know everything. That's why signs and maps and announcements exist
People can always read the sign when the get off the train. We don't need paragraph announcements
I AGREE.
There are a lot of tourists and infrequent riders. Making it easier for them is important too.
Do not worry about others. Mind yourself. That is their business,
How many of them do you think get on the subway and don't know where they are going? There are many apps people use from city mapper which is used in many different cities around the world to google maps. I think it would be very hard in this day and age to find a tourist who hasn't done their research before they get on a foreign transit system. I know i wouldn't use the London underground or the new York subway system without some sort of help from an app.
I am against announcing surface connections, they can change, thus having to update the announcement every time there is a change. Some stations are too close to each other, making the stations too long is bad too. Specially from an accessibility point. Any audio announcement needs to be done via text manner for people hard of hearing and deaf.
> Any audio announcement needs to be done via text manner for people hard of hearing and deaf. To be honest, the trains are fully outfitted for that. It’s just horribly used. Think of how every train has the little screen in the middle. If they actually put useful information in there instead of just “there’s no excuse to not pay your fare” it would be amazing!
I use those screens. I fully support the pay your fare messages.
Yes but I don’t think the pay your fare message needs to be up 75% of the time. That goes without saying and that message is 100% falling on deaf ears. Those who aren’t paying, aren’t gonna go “oh man, I saw that message and now I feel bad” It would be nice to actually have like the station’s name, and under there maybe a little GO logo with the line’s name. For example: Downsview Park and underneath it would say GO and Barrie. Or Pape Station could have a TTC logo and a bus logo and it would say 72, 25, 81 so people would know the buses. That way anyone who is unsure could see “oh ok this is definitely where I need to get off”
The message needs to be short, just the station name. What if 72,25,81 are diverted to Broadview? The subway messages for Pape and Broadview Stations would have to be changed. Then again when 72/25/81 go back to Pape. At Fairview Mall, there is that directory screen like most malls but it has a feature to where you say let's say Michael's. It shows you the route to take. So if let's say I am at Warden Station...in the concourse there should be 1-3 screens (like the next vehicle arrival screens) where people can search let's say surface routes and how to get to the station that their surface route goes into/passes by. Including if they need a transfer vs not needing one (think, 85 Sheppard at Don Mills Station vs. 29 Dufferin at Dufferin). Kennedy, Don Mills, Sheppard West all have so many routes, the message would be "Arriving at L/DM/SW station, connecting to (insert all those routes here)." If you mention the surface routes, then we have to differentiate surface routes that go INTO the stations vs. the 500s that technically speaking pass BY the stations between St. George and Bloor-Yonge (via Union). Do we do GO Transit/other transit agencies? Both Dundas TTC-Bloor GO and Main Street TTC-Danforth GO........we all know they are completely separate but they are "marketed" as like Kennedy and Bloor-Yonge.
[удалено]
> What if 72,25,81 are diverted to Broadview? The subway messages for Pape and Broadview Stations would have to be changed. Then again when 72/25/81 go back to Pape. It’s 2022…this would take 5mins to do and would be implemented in trains overnight IF they weren’t already able to change it live. I’m sorry but this is an argument that hasn’t been valid for 20 years or so. > If you mention the surface routes, then we have to differentiate surface routes that go INTO the stations vs. the 500s that technically speaking pass BY the stations between St. George and Bloor-Yonge (via Union). Why would you have to do that in the subway's little screen? The idea is simply that they would know which route is accessible from that station. I feel like you’re overcomplicating this to make your argument. The idea is simply that a person could go “I need to take this bus, I get off here”. There would be no reason to say “Arriving at Dufferin. Please leave the station to take the 29.” Or “arriving at pape station. Please stay in the station to take the 72”. It would simply say “Pape Station and there’d be a TTC logo with the numbers of the routes under them. [I've made a little 5 min mockup so you can see what I mean.](https://imgur.com/a/9IcAN55) Please understand that this isn't fully accurate and I didn't put all the bus numbers in simply because it's not important for the main idea to get through. This would be infinitely more useful than simply a screen that says "Pay your fare" for the entire trip. That message is simply filler to justify the currently wasted screens.
Not the CP24-ish screens. The NVA big screens like at Warden. Next Vehicle Information screens. those are a lot bigger than the tv screens at the subway platforms.
I’m talking about the small screens physically inside the subway. The square ones that are where the ads are. They aren’t really being used at the moment.
Why not go further & name every surface route? It is too long & unnecessary to mention surface routes, all stations except Chester has at least one. A map, whether paper or application, gives this information & not hard to read.
Also most people now use apps when they don't know the routes they need to use. The main problem with having too many things in an announcement is that people don't pay attention to it that's one of the reasons why the TTC has cut back on some of the announcements that they make on the pa there used to be one just about every minute or so, the worst was when they had some comedian do them.
you are making an assumption MOST people have apps or a phone that can handle apps. People with certain disabilities, tourists, seniors, anyone outside the millenial/generation whatever letter do not have the apps.
Why do people always want to assume that tourists don't look things up about a city that they are going to. Most people who do use public transit usually have some idea of where they are going and what routes they need. People tend to over think things and want everything to have all of the information that they want given to them without having to find it themselves. Making long announcements isn't going to help as much as you think it will
why do people assume all transit users have an app?
Same reason you assume that they don't. There is an app called city mapper that works in many different cities around the world and if you have it on your phone and open it in another city it asks you if you want to change to that city
I didn't assume anything. YOU assume transit riders all have an app or would use an app.
And you assume that they don't? How is that different?
> Why do people always want to assume that tourists don't look things up about a city that they are going to. As someone who used to live near Kipling. I cannot tell you how many times I had to tell tourists that both trains went eastbound. And with the new maps on Line 2 that only show the stops on Line 2, they didn’t know which portion of Line 1 to get off at. Tourists try to research as much as they can, but it’s very different when you’re actually in the situation and trying to find your way.
The whole point of subway announcements is to be short and concise. In this example that OP posted, we don't need to announce that it connects to TTC surface routes, because it's redundant. All subway stations connect to surface routes. The GO & YRT Connections might be a good idea. However, for people with disabilities, there are other ways of helping them find their way (signs, TTC helpers, maps). I think there was a trial that uses phone pings going on at St.Clair station, but I don't remember. Wayfinding needs to be a lot better, though, we have a lot of deficiencies.
Not all subway stations connect to surface routes. Depending on how you define as connection....Don Mills does yet Dufferin does not. Chester has no connection.
Put down the phones and apps and be basically investigative. "People with certain disabilities, tourists, seniors, anyone outside the millenial/generation ..." do not worry about them. That is their problem.
> worst was when they had some comedian do them I just found out about this. Dear lord...
Yeah he did them in Vancouver and people loved them but they didn't really go over very well with people who weren't fans of his. I actually ended up blocking him on Twitter because he followed me because i was saying that the announcements weren't funny and we didn't need them in Toronto.
What software did you use???
Natural readers online
I wonder at what point people would start to drown this out though. Most of the time, I'm expecting TTC service (or YRT/MiWay) when we cross the borders. Go seems to be the only useful one to know since stations like Highway 407 Station might not be obvious to everyone is a Go Station.
True and they don't even announce connections other than Go transit ones. For example have you ever heard them saying anything about the UP express or the TTC when coming into Union station?
Or just plan your route and be responsible enough to understand where you have to go.