TTC: Other Items (catch all)

[crs1026]

Perhaps if this does go viral it will draw attention to the free newspaper problem, which IMHO really ought to be banned at subway entrances.

I love books, but keep the depots more than 50 meters from the entrance to the subway. Let the TTC focus on moving people.

- Paul

 

[steveintoronto]

If you want a shrine to books, go to a library.

Did he really write that?

Resistance is futile.

If you really want a newspaper, go to a newspaper stand? Where do you draw the line?

http://www.booksonthemoveglobal.com/

But not on the TTC, nossirreee! Can't have no darn interlektual stuff. Everyone must conform with their iDevice.

 

[AlvinofDiaspar]

Did he really write that?
Resistance is futile.
If you really want a newspaper, go to a newspaper stand? Where do you draw the line?

It's hard not to recognize a slippery slope fallacy when you see one, and lest I remind one the issue of discarded free papers giving TTC headaches (which should have been avoided in the first place). Please, not all rules are meant to be challenged.

AoD

 

[steveintoronto]

[...]
So far Metrolinx, which has co-operated with Books on the Transit, has not been overwhelmed with a library of books in its lost and found.

Little and Sanders have left books on GO trains, buses and the Union-Pearson Express, leaving them on seats and on top of automated ticket machines.

Metrolinx spokesperson Anne Marie Aikins says it's working out so far.

"People are clearly taking the books," she told Metro, adding that Metrolinx only gets a couple of the books in the lost and found each month, and that they are clearly identified by the stickers on the cover.

Aikins also said Books on the Transit fits in with the rider experience Metrolinx hopes to create.

"People want to be comfortable," she said.
[...]
http://www.metronews.ca/news/toronto/2017/07/24/ttc-books-on-the-transit.html?cq_ck=1500937892866

Says a lot about the TTC management, and Torontonians in general. I normally wouldn't hold up Metrolinx as an inherently culture friendly org, but in this instance, the TTC is stuck in the station.

 

[AlvinofDiaspar]

[...]
Says a lot about the TTC management, and Torontonians in general. I normally wouldn't hold up Metrolinx as an inherently culture friendly org, but in this instance, the TTC is stuck in the station.

One can only hope Metrolinx spend more time worrying about their construction projects than being "culturally friendly". Perhaps they should be giving out copies of Machiavelli's The Prince out gratis.

AoD

 

[steveintoronto]

One can only hope Metrolinx spend more time worrying about their construction projects than being "culturally friendly". Perhaps they should be giving out copies of Machiavelli's The Prince out gratis.

AoD

How Toronto of you! Many other *World Class Cities* not only do this, they encourage it. I've just been reading up on it, there's a lot on-line, but here's the beginnings of the London Underground example (which now hosts Books on the Underground) a very successful and embraced program:

Book swaps at London tube and train stations 'a good idea', says Johnson
London mayor agrees to look into creating a network for sharing books at capital's stations in time for 2012 Olympics
Monday 12 December 2011 19.43 GMT

Book swaps and book shares could be set up at tube and train stations across London in time for the 2012 Olympic Games.

Boris Johnson, the London mayor, agreed to look into the possibility of establishing a network of book swaps in the capital's 700 tube and train stations, in response to an idea put forward by Chris Gilson, a political researcher at the London School of Economics, who has already set up a pilot scheme for communal book sharing in his local station, West Ealing.

Johnson, chair of Transport for London, welcomed the suggestion presented to him at a London policy conference, though he warned that it might be difficult to get Tfl on board.

But he said he would be "thrilled" to try and develop the idea in time for the ambitious deadline of the Games next summer.

"I think it's a very good idea and would say something powerful about the kind of city we are and our commitment to literacy, which obviously we are trying to demonstrate in lots of ways particularly with young people," said Johnson.

Gilson was the winner of Ideas4Mayor – an initiative from thinktanks Centre for London and IPPR for Londoners to tweet their ideas for the mayoral candidates on how to improve life in London.

Gilson told Johnson on the conference platform that currently there were just half a dozen book swaps and book sharing places at train stations in London. With the world's eyes on London, it would be "fantastic" if it could be seen as the capital of reading and literacy as well as the Games through a major expansion of the initiative, he said.

Gilson described the shame of so many books ending up in landfill each year, as he highlighted the benefits to both literacy and community engagement of book swapping and sharing.

He called on Johnson to agree help to promote the campaign and encourage community groups to get on board, and ensure that Tfl enables book swaps to be set up in stations efficiently and safely.

The mayor warned of the difficulties of getting the scheme in Tfl's sights in light of the endless requests for access to station premises for different ventures.

But he said if the scheme did not cost "a penny" of taxpayers' money, then he was happy to take up the idea.

"All I can say that provided it doesn't cost a penny to the taxpayer... then we would be only too thrilled to take it up. I will see what we can do."

https://www.theguardian.com/books/2011/dec/12/book-swaps-london-tube-stations

It's been a massive success. And how popular has it become? Well, as much as she's a celebrity, this will give an indication:

1.8M likes!
https://www.thecut.com/2016/11/emma-watson-is-hiding-feminist-fiction-on-the-london-subway.html

 

[AlvinofDiaspar]

How Toronto of you! Many other *World Class Cities* not only do this, they encourage it. I've just been reading up on it, there's a lot on-line, but here's the beginnings of the London Underground example (which now hosts Books on the Underground) a very successful and embraced program:

Why do I care what London Underground does, other than the extensiveness of their network and their ability to deliver quality transit service?

There is no small irony of quoting Instagram to point out the popularity of a distinctively analogue technology on an online forum. Must have done it on the subway train in the tunnel.

AoD

 

[steveintoronto]

Why do I care what London Underground does, other than the extensiveness of their network?

lol...there's more to culture than physical size Alvin.

There is no small irony of quoting Instagram to point out the popularity of a distinctively analogue technology on an online forum.

It's double irony, this is also electronic media, but that makes it all the more poignant. One doesn't replace the other....and shouldn't.

I do think the people of Toronto will win on this one. And for all his cultural clumsiness, I think Tory will feel compelled to make statements, if not nudge the TTC Board to over-rule management. Or does Toronto need yet another PR disaster?

I mean, pretty soon, even cyclists will want to have their own ways...literally. Can't have that now, littering the roadways. What do I care what other cities do?

 

[TheTigerMaster]

Perhaps if this does go viral it will draw attention to the free newspaper problem, which IMHO really ought to be banned at subway entrances.

I love books, but keep the depots more than 50 meters from the entrance to the subway. Let the TTC focus on moving people.

- Paul

Track fires are a common problem on the TTC. I wonder how many of them are caused by discarded Metro (and other brand) newspapers. How much money are these delays costing the TTC? Perhaps we oughta ban the distribution of them in and around subway stations.

 

[steveintoronto]

Track fires are a common problem on the TTC. I wonder how many of them are caused by discarded Metro (and other brand) newspapers. How much money are these delays costing the TTC? Perhaps we oughta ban the distribution of them in and around subway stations.

Indeed...which is why I asked prior, "how far do you want to take this?". In fact, since taking measures, like catchment boxes at the end of platforms between the rails, and requesting that newspapers be stapled together, and recycling bins, the problem is far less than what it used to be. Which clearly demonstrates how a few measures can go a long way in addressing day-to-day activities.

What is profound is that no other major system petitioned to allow or host a "books on the XXX" program has reacted the way the TTC has. Metrolinx appear effusive and helpful. I'll have to Google more later looking for one, there might be one I haven't found yet but so far the TTC appears to be the only one.

"Only in Toronto you say? Pity..."

Btw: The TTC has decided to ask everyone to take their boots off at the bus, streetcar and subway entrances. It's creating a real mess they have to clean up...

Edit to Add: (This is where books and digital merge, something the TTC might wish to consider)

If you ever find yourself without a book during a lengthy commute, the New York Public Library has got you covered. In collaboration with the MTA, New York State, TransitWireless and the Queens and Brooklyn Public Libraries, NYPL is bringing us the “Subway Library,” a platform that provides commuters with access to free e-books, short stories and more—whether you’re above or below ground.

Beginning today, the “Subway Library” will offer six weeks of free downloadable books, all provided by the city’s public libraries—and you won’t need a library card to access the literary trove. Simply download SimplyE, the library’s free e-reader app, to access the collection, or connect via TransitWireless Wi-Fi in any MTA station. (Once you’re logged on, you’ll be led to a prompt for Subwaylibrary.com, which is also accessible through a web browser.)

A subway train has been made to look like the iconic Rose Reading room with its stunning ceiling. Image via Bhushan Mondkar

Bookworms can choose from a range of books and curated short-stories (for quick commutes) including: “New York Stories” like The Power Broker by Robert A. Caro and At Balthazar, by Reggie Nadelson; “International Titles” like The Festival of Ghosts by Zheng Xiaolu and A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry; and “Classics” like A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens and Crime and Punishment by Fyodor M. Dostoevsky.

To celebrate the launch of the project, a subway train has been decked out to look like the inside of the New York Public Library’s Rose Main Reading Room. You can find it running along the 6 Avenue and 8 Avenue corridor lines on the E and F trains.

MTA, new york public library, NYPL, Subway Library

http://untappedcities.com/2017/06/08/nypl-and-mta-bring-a-library-to-the-nyc-subway/

Meantime, how about allowing a limited number of real books, on this amazing medium called...'paper', that people will circulate, take home, and return for others to read.

Couldn't happen in Toronto...nah...

 

[dowlingm]

I think wifi has killed some of the demand for free papers on the subway - I don't take one now and I don't see as many people around me with them. The electrification/track fire issue makes this much more acute for TTC than GO.

 

[steveintoronto]

The desperation of reasons for being culturally constipated never ceases to astound.

Books don't burn that readily. In almost all cases, as anyone who has had to burn books knows (and a very unfortunate side of running a bookshop or publishing house) is that you need an accelerant, unlike newspapers, or litter, albeit even newspapers densely stacked burn very slowly. Paper bags, plastics and many synthetic textiles are vastly more of a threat. But I digress...what's bothering some of you is that someone else might be having a better time than you are. And why can't they just do as they're told? Tsk, tsk.

From NOW magazine:

'Book bandits' are hiding free books for Toronto commuters on public transit
Part of a global initiative, Books on the Transit wants to bring strangers together through a shared love of reading – but the TTC is not having it

by I. Rattan


July 25, 2017

12:12 PM

[...]Transit partner Metrolinx shares Little’s vision for reader engagement. It’s somewhat serendipitous that Sanders and Little were teamed with Anne Marie Aikins, Metrolinx’s senior manager, media relations, communications and public affairs.

A former corporate communications manager for the Toronto Public Library and the author of four books, Aikins was immediately intrigued by the idea of fostering a reading experience across GO’s network.

“We’re always looking for ways to ensure our customers are more comfortable,” says Aikins, adding that GO is underway on a year-long process to outfit its buses and trains with WiFi. “The actual tangible [feel of] books and newspapers in your hands, I don’t want us as a society to lose that love.”

While Books on the Transit is available on GO, the TTC has declined to participate. The city’s transit commission cited an unwillingness to keep track of the books if they’re turned in as lost articles.

“Our position on this is that we would prefer people, no matter how well-intentioned, not leave books laying around on TTC property,” spokesperson Stuart Green wrote in a statement to NOW. “There is the very real possibility they could get turned in as lost articles or simply discarded and we cannot take on the additional task of trying to keep tabs on these items.

“Toronto has one of the greatest public library systems in the world that people should be encouraged to use,” he added.

On occasion, Aikins has seen the initiative’s books turned into GO’s lost and found but she’s willing to work with Sanders and Little toward a solution to retrieve them.

Frustrated, Little struggles to understand the TTC’s motives behind declining participation.

She notes that Books on the Transit does not require any allocation of resources from participating transit systems and that her team can conduct weekly pickups of books turned in as lost.

“I want more of a valid reason, personally,” she says. “How is it that San Francisco, Los Angeles, Montreal, Delhi – all these other cities have been doing it for years, so why is the TTC not willing to participate? This is something that can help build its reputation – being a transit system that doesn’t have the greatest track record.”

However, Little is not giving up her quest to bring Books on the Move to the TTC.

In the meantime, GO commuters can keep track of where books are dropped at booksonthetransit.tumblr.com, on Instagram and on Twitter.

https://nowtoronto.com/art-and-books/books/books-on-the-transit-hiding-books-TTC/

So cue the latest batch of naysaying:
"Oh, but you could catch The Plague from them"
"You could trip on them"
"I don't like people wot read books"
"Too many words"
"I have a wilnot, so I can't read, so no-one else can"
"You could catch bedbugs!"
....

There's going to be so much hat to eat on this one...

 

[dowlingm]

The desperation of reasons for being culturally constipated never ceases to astound.

 

[kEiThZ]

One can only hope Metrolinx spend more time worrying about their construction projects than being "culturally friendly". Perhaps they should be giving out copies of Machiavelli's The Prince out gratis.

AoD

More like they tolerate the books, to distract customers while waiting a long time for their train....


To be fair, I think books are less of an issue than the newspapers causing trash all over the place. The TTC should be nerfing free newspapers in front of and at their stations. But they probably get revenue, so they won't do that.

 

[drum118]

New York City and a few other systems are looking at banning food and drinks while using the system. TTC has talked about do it, but very little in the way of talk considering they sale food in a number of stations in the first place.

I don't see paper been a big issue these day since the station are well keep and very rarely I see stuff on the platform at all. I find it more of a problem on buses and less on streetcar. Boils down to people being to lazy to to drop things in the bin after being on the train or just being a slob.

There are a number of places that have books to read and ask they be return later as well adding books to the collection. I don't see anything wrong in doing it as it allow people to read what they want or give other people something to read.