NYC Subway Guide

Subway Flashers Beware (Part II?)

This time I'm talking about all those people that like to take pictures in the subway using a camera with a flash! You know who you are. Most people taking photographs are tourists. Some people are professional photographers and a few are locals just having a fun day/night out. The MTA has recently allowed picture taking and filming with some restrictions. One of them is the use of a flash.

Using a flash in the subway is strictly prohibited. Can anyone guess why? If you take a picture of a train coming into the station and you use a flash, think about what you just did to the train operator looking for the mark to stop the train at. The train operator will be temporarily blinded! This leads to a variety of possible problems, some of which would actually endanger peoples' lives. Unfortunately, this is much more common than some would think. I personally know many train operators who have been "flashed" many times in a single day. Most incidents occur on the weekend when the tourists are out in force.

These incidents go mostly unreported (unless something bad, like a missed stop, or passenger injury actually happens). The reason these incidents go unreported is that nothing will be done about it. Since the MTA allows the taking of photographs and video, it is assumed that anything goes by most people. There is no deterrent. The police do not give out fines to anyone taking pictures even if they use a flash.

Is there a solution? The real answer is no. There are some things the MTA can do. Posting easy to understand posters, with basic information about the use of flash in the subway at all entrances would be a start. The same posters could be blown up and adhered to the front of trains (the MTA already uses large stickers of American flags on the sides of trains). One final idea would be to put a large sticker with reflective material (like they have on NYCT safety vests) on the front of trains. This would force any photographs taken to be overexposed and unusable to the photographer. This would eliminate any professionals taking the photographs because they will know that the photographs would be useless. Tourists would eventually get the idea too.

It is unfortunate that the MTA does not try to address this situation at all. The only thing about this subject is buried on one of their website pages under rules of conduct. Having trouble finding it? Here it is under section 1050.9, Restricted areas and activities, paragraph "c". There isn't even any mention of the use of flashbulbs.

The MTA should have never allowed picture taking in the first place. The old system would have been better if left in place and enforced. Since the MTA has changed this rule to allow people to take photographs, then educating riders must be a priority. Leveling fines against "violators" would not work, so it is not done. I wouldn't want anyone getting a fine, especially a tourist. Can you imagine tourists traveling to New York, getting a fine for taking pictures and then going back home to tell everyone what experiences they had in New York? Reminding riders about the dangers of flashbulbs is the only method that makes sense. It is common sense to begin with. Remember the last time you went to see some acrobatic show like Cirque du Soleil? (Cirque du Soleil has some awesome shows. I haven't seen Corteo yet but I have seen many others. You will not be disappointed! See them on Randall's Island now.) They remind you at the start of every show "NO FLASHBULBS!" They do not want the performers to get hurt. Remember this the next time you are in the subway and want to take a picture of you and your friends.

posted by Slim @ 1:13 AM