Gravy Train
New York City wants subway riders to leave behind their morning coffee. Here, the MBTA lets commuters happily stuff their faces. And they do.
 The money the MBTA makes from vendors who sell food inside stations is too much for the agency to give up. (Globe Staff Photo / Erik Jacobs) |
Earlier this summer, New York City subway officials proposed passenger rules that would ban - among other things - cups of coffee. But there's no need to worry about Boston putting on a similar lid. "I don't think we're going to suddenly say somebody can't have a Dunkin' Donuts coffee or a bagel with cream cheese or a Snickers bar, for that matter," says Dan Grabauskas, general manager of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. That means we can keep right on riding the rails in the cradle of liberty, noshing and slurping through every stop - and turning subway cars into chaotic, oversized trash bins.
Under Gotham's proposal, riders could face fines of $50 to $100 if caught drinking from an open container, straddling a bicycle, standing on a skateboard, changing cars while the train is in motion, or putting their feet on the seats. The proposed edicts threw straphangers into a tizzy - particularly the bans on drinking and car-hopping. One woman rider, who once suffered a subway perv's exhibition, told The New York Times: "Now I'm going to get a fine for that, for running from a flasher? I won't pay it!"
Surely there are better things to ban. I would forbid the sharing of porn magazines, as happened to me one day on a crowded Green Line trolley when the guy wedged on my right nudged me while pointing to an X-rated spread of private parts. I escaped at the next station, even though it wasn't my stop. Mark Richards might suggest a popcorn prohibition. The software engineer and T gadfly, with the help of a network of tipsters, runs www.badtransit.com out of his home in a western suburb he declines to name. (Privacy, like subway odors, is a theme on his site.)
Richards tells of taking the Red Line to Quincy and watching a "humongous fellow" drink a diet soda and stuff his face with popcorn from a paper bag, spilling kernels and dribbling on his stomach. "At his station, the man crumpled up the paper bag, heaved it on the floor, tossed the plastic soda bottle down as well, and waddled out," says Richards, who blames the MBTA for creating a lawless, messy environment.
"When you maintain your infrastructure," Richards says, riders "take pride in it, and that's reflected in the appearance of things. I think people feel better."
The T not only allows eating and drinking, it encourages it with vending machines and kiosks that feed an underground economy. Explains Grabauskas, "These vendors like Dunkin' Donuts produce revenue for us."
Safety and security - especially since last month's London bombings - are the T's top priority. While unattended bags are a major concern, officials still enforce the workaday rules that restrict bikes and leashed dogs during rush hours. The Green Line and the Mattapan trolley ban bicycles altogether. Yet, compared with riders in Chicago and Washington, which punish eating and drinking on trains, Bostonians ride unencumbered by "don'ts."
Some may say this freedom to sip and sup is comforting at a time when bigger threats loom over public transportation. Richards believes otherwise, arguing that rules give people higher standards and brighter expectations.
"I think [the MBTA] really should eliminate food and drink on the trains, but what they also have to do is better the service," he says. "What they need to give is public transit that works - that's efficient, reliable, friendly, and clean with infrastructure that is maintained."
That means take all personal belongings - including crumbs - with you as you exit.
Monica Collins is a freelance writer. E-mail her at mcollins@globe.com.
