Commentary

How to make transit even less appealing

Take away commuters’ coffee. That’s what’s happened in New York. Daniel Koffler points to this story:

Moving between cars – as well as resting one’s feet on the seats, sipping from an open container (even a cup of coffee) and straddling a bicycle while riding the subway – will be prohibited under a new set of passenger rules adopted by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s transit committee yesterday, the first such rule changes since 1994. While riding between cars is already forbidden, managers at the authority said they wanted to make clear that even quickly darting from one car to another while the train is in motion is dangerous.

Wearing in-line skates has also been moved to the banned list. Obviously passing a law is one thing, enforcing it is another. And let’s pause to consider all the possible unintended consequences. This is what happened when New York banned smoking in bars and restaurants.