Awesome New York Subway Signage: Spoilers and Lubrication on the L

via Second Avenue Sagas

With any progressive change, there are detractors. For example, those who find the MTA's new countdown clocks to "spoil" the delicious mystery of When is my freakin' train gonna come? While we don't mind knowing when our train is going to come -- we even like it -- we do find the latest anti-MTA-signage kinda awesome.

Jason Eppink, the man behind the signs (in conjunction with Newmindspace), also orchestrated -- or helped out with -- the Tourist/New Yorkers sidewalk lanes and the Star Wars subway car. According to his site:

In 2007, the New York City Transit Authority began installing LED signs on subway platforms that display estimated wait times for arriving trains. Unfortunately the information is little more than trivia: Except for a few stations, it is only visible to travelers after they've paid their fare, so the data has little bearing on commuter decision-making.

Their primary effect, then, is to erode faith in the system, to create expectations that can't always be met, to raise false hopes, and to erase the mystery and magic of the wondrous system that transports more than five million riders a day.

The Spoiler Alert signs warn waiting riders of this potentially unwanted information -- allowing them to avert their eyes so they may preserve their spirit of adventure -- while still leaving visible the data for travelers who wish to ruin the surprise for themselves.

Like so.

via Jason Eppink

And then there's this unintentionally hilarious New York subway signage, sighted by a tipster at the Lorimer L:

Sometimes an old track needs a little lubrication, you know. Even in cases of 69. (Ooh: Spoiler alert!)

[via Second Avenue Sagas]

[JDoll][Twitter]