Guide-A-Ride
Guide-A-Ride is the
The Guide-A-Ride canister is vandal-resistant[2] and was designed for easy updating of the information displayed; though as a partly analog tool still requiring visits to the site – requiring some planning during the massive system-wide service reductions the MTA was forced to implement at the end of December 2009.[3]
History
The New York City Transit Authority (NYCTA, NYCT, or TA) first announced a plan for "metal diagrammatic maps of bus routes on bus-stop stanchions" in 1964. These consisted of large metal signs (14 x 8 1⁄2 inches) with pictographic depictions of bus routes.[4][5][6][7] Sometimes installed in the place of conventional bus stops, these signs were often considered confusing, as they attempted to consolidate multiple route maps onto a single sign and sometimes omitted routes.[8]
The prototype for Guide-A-Ride was developed in 1977,[9] the key novelty in the display of times to the minute the bus was due at the individual stop.[10] The first sign was installed along the Q44A (now Q46) route in Queens.[11]
Although skeptics doubted the ability of buses on New York City’s densely packed streets to show up anything like the times posted, on-time performance proved to be reliable.[2] Regardless, customers were able to confirm whether they were at the right place at the right time.[10] The actual displays began appearing at bus stops a few years later.[2] The TA did not have a good reputation at the time, but Guide-A-Ride came to be viewed as one positive thing.[12]
Current status
Even despite being superseded by
References
- ^ "How to Ride the Bus, Welcome Tourists and Visitors". MTA New York City Transit Authority. Retrieved August 12, 2013.
- ^ a b c Fowler, Glenn (October 2, 1980). "New Bus Signs To Help Riders Find Their Way" (PDF). New York Times. Retrieved August 12, 2013.
- ^ "Preparing the 2010 NYCT Service Reductions: Lessons Learned from Prior Exercise, or How We Spent our Christmas Vacation" (PDF). MTA New York City Transit Authority. July 2010. Retrieved August 12, 2013.
- ^ "Bus Stop" (PDF). The New York Times. April 30, 1964. Retrieved November 9, 2015.
- ^ Perlmutter, Emanuel (April 29, 1964). "City Installing New Route Signs at Bus Stops: Transit Agency Also Hopes to Improve Maps in Subway" (PDF). The New York Times. Retrieved November 10, 2015.
- ^ "B46 BUS STOP, Williamsburg". Forgotten New York. Retrieved September 23, 2016.
- ^ "GREENPOINT AVENUE bus map". Forgotten New York. Retrieved September 23, 2016.
- ^ Schumach, Murray (May 28, 1966). "Midtown Buses Outrun Their Signs and Their Riders: Lack of Directions for New Routes Causes Confusion" (PDF). The New York Times. Retrieved November 10, 2015.
- ^ "MTA Home Page". July 7, 2009. Archived from the original on July 7, 2009. Retrieved September 23, 2016.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) - ^ a b Blumenthal, Ralph (November 14, 1977). "Information 'Kiosks' Help Bus Riders Solve Puzzle" (PDF). New York Times. Retrieved August 12, 2013.
- ^ "New York City Transit Facts & Figures: 1979" (PDF). La Guardia and Wagner Archives. Metropolitan Transportation Authority, New York City Transit Authority. 1979. Retrieved October 24, 2016.
- ^ "The Worm and the Apple". The New York Times. June 1, 1985.
- ^ "Key Bus Route Improvement Program". Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. Retrieved August 12, 2013.
- ^ Hymon, Steve (August 24, 2010). "The Art of Transit". The Source. Retrieved August 12, 2013.
- ^ Geller, Larry (June 6, 2012). "Honolulu city government: near zero bang for the buck". Disappeared News. Retrieved August 12, 2013.