Comments on: Lost In Subway Translation

By: James

James — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 20:11:59 +0000

Don’t worry Peter, as mass transit switches over to recordings, multilingual society will catch up at the same time. You’ll still have plenty of opportunities to misunderstand the announcements. Here in Portland the light rail announcements are all pre-recorded, but include Spanish translations. At every stop we hear “Pork chops are gonna scare ya!” (Puertas a mi izquierda) or “Pork chop are gonna getcha!” (Puertas a la mi derecha.)

By: amy van vechten

amy van vechten — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 17:25:37 +0000

14 transfer to the F,L,V, path, 2, 3 express trains.
18 next.
bronx bound 1.
stand clear, please.

By: Peter Kirn

Peter Kirn — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 01:16:33 +0000

Ah, yes, there is the whole idea about an announcement being a way of conveying information to people on the train. :)

But I’m going to miss the quirky and often indecipherable announcements as we go to recordings. (Happily, service changes allow the conductors to chime right back in with critical information you then can’t understand as they should into the PA. Brilliant.)

By: Ingrid

Ingrid — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 23:03:53 +0000

Peter nailed it! I think it’s easier for us NYers to understand because we know what to expect them to say. When I first moved here I loved getting to “know” the conductors on my morning commute by voice. there was Bitter Jaded Conductor, Movie Fone Voice Conductor, etc.

By: christina wilson

christina wilson — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 21:50:50 +0000

I thought I heard something about Velveeta Cheese at the end. That is incomprehensible!

By: Paul Quitoriano

Paul Quitoriano — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 21:36:33 +0000

http://photos-h.ll.facebook.com/photos-ll-snc1/v2078/185/1/11709353/n11709353_33813927_6112.jpg

I had to deal with this at Canal St the other day.

No joke.

By: Scott Beale

Scott Beale — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 21:20:06 +0000

Peter, the video and photo were taken at different times and locations. You’re right, it’s probably a 1-2-3, since I took those uptown quite a bit as well. I’ll update the post to eliminate any future confusion.

By: Peter Kirn

Peter Kirn — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 21:17:33 +0000

Oh, wait, got it. 14th Street. Transfer to the F, L, V, PATH, 2/3 express train. 18th street next, Bronx-bound 1. Stand clear of the doors, please.

By: cyclosity

cyclosity — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 21:16:21 +0000

14 ( as in 14th street) transfer F, L, V, Path (NJ transit), 2, and 3 express trains… and then he kind of lost me.

By: Peter Kirn

Peter Kirn — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 21:15:43 +0000

You are clearly on a 1 train, though, not a C. The C train wasn’t running (as evidenced by the sign), replaced by the A, it’s the wrong equipment in the video, and unless this subway conductor was severely confused, those were the 7th Ave. + 14th St. transfer announcements.

By: steve garfield

steve garfield — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 21:15:33 +0000

THAT is hillarious. It was great being able to hang out with you at ROFLThing. See you in Austin.

By: Scott Beale

Scott Beale — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 21:15:23 +0000

Bravo, that’s sounds pretty close.

By: Peter Kirn

Peter Kirn — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 21:13:52 +0000

14th Street. Transfer to the F, L, V, PATH, 2, 3, express train ?? Bronx-bound 1. Stand clear of the doors, please.