The Great Cellphone Debate:  The Case For “Quiet Cars” on Metro-North

 

By Jim Cameron, Vice Chairman

CT Metro-North Shore Line East Rail Commuter Council

 

 

Much has been reported in the media lately about The CT Metro-North Shore Line East Rail Commuter Council’s battle against cellphone use on the trains.  Unfortunately, a great deal of that reporting has been inaccurate. So speaking only for myself, not on behalf of the Council, but as one of the advocates for restricting cellphone use on the trains, let me set the record straight.

 

As the MTA likes to remind us in its ad campaigns, “Train time is your own time.” For some that means they use their ride to get work done while others chose to read or take a nap.  To each his own… as long as it doesn’t impose on others.

 

People who carry on loud, lengthy conversations on cellphones are imposing on other riders’ “space”.  So too are those who engage in raucous discussions, listening to boom-boxes or other noisy activities. 

 

Peace and quiet should be the normative state on the trains, not the exception.

 

The Commuter Council has received numerous complaints over the past year from commuters whose peaceful enjoyment of their ride was interrupted by another passenger’s inconsiderate exercise of their right to talk on a cellphones.  We have addressed this issue to officials of Metro-North and Connecticut Dept. of Transportation, so far to no avail.

 

I would leave it to those agencies to explain why they have taken no action on this issue, but we get the general sense that they don’t want to “play cop” and police their passengers’ behavior.  One official even suggested to me that limiting use of cellphones might be illegal.

 

I would point out that the railroad already has rules, which it enforces, against use of audio devices (like radios and tape-players) without headphones.  It also has no trouble having conductors ask passengers to take their briefcases and feet off the seats so that others might enjoy their ride.

 

Certainly, some passengers have shown sensitivity and care in their use of cellphones, often moving from their seats to a vestibule to carry on their conversations.  But unfortunately, there are even more riders whose cellphone use is a badge of their self-importance and bravado… the bigger the ego, the longer and louder the call.

 

It should be noted that Amtrak has been experimenting with “Quiet Cars” on their trains, so far to great acclaim from passengers.  How can Amtrak be so successful and Metro-North so timid.

 

My proposal would be simple:

 

§       Designate one out of every four cars as a “Quiet Car”, labeled as such both inside and outside the car.  Just as in the old days of Smoking Cars, these special cars would be identically positioned on each train, i.e. the first car, fifth car, etc.) so passengers could easily find them.

 

§       Passengers riding in these “Quiet Cars” would be expected to be, well, quiet!  That would mean no cellphones, conversations, radios, singing, playing of musical instruments… anything that creates an objectionable  noise.

 

§       If passengers were to enter these “Quiet Cars” expecting a peaceful ride, I’m guessing they’d have no trouble addressing (and educating) those who violate the norms of ridership in that car.  Those who want or need to make cellphone calls would find at least three other cars per train in which to conduct their business.

 

§       If demand for “Quiet Cars” grew beyond one per train, more cars could be so designated. Again, the expectation should be that a train ride would be quiet.  Let those who wish to do otherwise find the proper place.  In other words, if passengers wanted them, someday there could be three “Quiet Cars” for every one “non-Quiet Car”.  Let the passengers decide, just as they did in the days of Smoking Cars which dwindled in number over the years.

 

§       Passengers not in “Quiet Cars” should not then object if a passenger used their phone, as there would be no expectation of quiet in the non-“Quiet Cars”.

 

Nobody is suggesting, as some have reported, that legislation is necessary to carry out this plan.  In fact, this issue of “noisy” passengers is an example of a far greater issue yet to be addressed by Metro-North and the MTA… passenger courtesy.

 

As children of the single-occupancy-vehicle generation, we’re all used to being selfish when we travel.  “Have it your way,” is the motto for both burgers and commuters.  We all want our independence.  (Remember the MTA slogan, “train time is your own time”?) In the cocoon of your own car you can do whatever you want… sing off-key, smoke a stogie, throw your trash in the backseat, etc. But take those same passengers and make them share the space of a public transit vehicle, and old habits die hard.

 

I’ve seen passengers bring bags of mail onto the train,  reading some and tearing up the rest, then depositing that trash on the floor of the train.  The same is true of newspapers, coffee cups and snack bags -- even though trash cans and recycling bins are available on every platform.  Yet, every Metro-North passenger survey in recent years has identified “dirty trains” as a growing problem.  Who created those condition,  the trash fairy?  Last time I checked, a ticket on Metro-North came with no guarantee of maid service.

 

The Commuter Council has asked Metro-North for years now to instruct conductors to politely announce to passengers at the end of a run “Please be considerate of fellow passengers and carry off the train whatever you carried on.”  So far, the railroad hasn’t taken the suggestion and the trains are getting dirtier as schedule demands limit cleaning time at the end of the line.

 

Ridership on Metro-North has grown more than 5% per year for the past five years.  Yet we have not added a single new rail car to the fleet in over a decade.  Crowding is now the norm on most trains, with many passengers choosing to stand rather than be crushed into the middle seat.

 

Mark my words:  conditions are going to get worse before they get any better, given the reluctance of the Legislature to appropriate any money for new trains.  So, shouldn’t Metro-North and CDOT do all they can to make a growingly-uncomfortable commute a little more pleasurable, simply by asking riders to be considerate of each other?

 

“Quiet Cars” would be an easy first step.  Why not take it?

 

 

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Related stories and ways you can help:

 

MNRR Survey Confirms Cell-Phone Problems

 

NY Times story on cell-phone abuse

 

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