Cell phone service on NYC subway platforms

Posted by on 26 September 2011 20:24 Leave a comment (4) Go to comments

AT&T and T-Mobile are expected to roll out cell phone service tomorrow to several platforms in the New York subway system. This is not unprecedented; California’s BART and Boston’s MBTA have had similar systems for years. This is a good move technologically, but many passengers have come to value their time in subway tunnels as a respite from the hectic above-ground life. As I’ve written before, we still need time to think, disconnected from cell phones and WiFi. Offering cell phone service in the subway extends the enticing tentacles of connection, making it harder to put away the devices and ponder. Ultimately, however, it’s still our choice whether to use that time for quiet reflection or feverish emailing.

CS 404, networking
  • Maria Baron

    I totally agree that people can choose to use their time for quiet reflection vs cell phone use. The only qualm I can think of with that is that you really can’t control other people. So even if you choose to use the time on the subway as time for reflection, you can’t help that the person next to you is talking rather loudly. Okay, person sitting next to me, I don’t really need to know about how your cat threw up three times last night and it looked like Dean Martin’s face.

  • http://globalconstant.scnay.com/ Steve Nay

    You bring up a good point. That’s not so much an issue with WiFi on airplanes, which is the post where I first made this argument. I like how the New York Times article describes the subway: “Perhaps no space in New York City is governed by as complex a set of social rules as the cramped subway car, that lurching human Petri dish . . . .” Adding cell phones into the mix will only complicate that social code. It will take decency from fellow passengers to keep the subway sane.

  • Younghoon Gim

    It might be desirable to have time to think, and disconnected from cell phones, however, it seems that the situation is unavoidable. 

  • David Hampton

    I have actually been on the subway still chatting with a friend when suddenly lost connection.  I got mixed feelings.  If the subway broke down, while under there.  It would be nice to inform people that you are ok.