Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) New York City Transit said late last week that it plans to replace the electronic strip maps on subway cars on the No. 2 and No. 5 Lines to supply more accurate and easily accessible information for riders.
Currently, the subway lines have strip maps with only information about the individual lines and not the overall subway system.
The new maps will allow riders to see where their subway car is heading if there are changes in subway service. The maps combine data from the No. 2 and No. 5 Lines, but illuminate only the routes in use. The existing maps show route data for either line.
The additions will be made to the R142 and R142A fleets.
This development is part of Governor Andrew Cuomo’s effort to enhance customer service on the subway system with upgraded, modernized amenities, which include upgrading the MTA Subway Time app so that it includes all lines, adding countdown clocks in the subway network, placing Help Point Intercoms at all stations and installing wireless connectivity to the underground stations.
“We are taking this opportunity to replace strip maps that are more than a decade old and going a step further to improve customer communication by creating this new strip map that shows both the 2 Subway and 5 Subway routes from end to end,” New York City Transit President Veronique “Ronnie” Hakim said. “The combined strip map lets us reassign trains more fluidly and shows our customers where they’re going, regardless of the train they’ve boarded. The redesign will alleviate customer confusion when trains are reassigned or rerouted from one line to another.”
