Passenger Trains > NJ Transit introduces the "quiet car"

Baristanet, a local NJ website, has a report on the introduction of "quiet cars" on NJ Transit. The idea is that certain cars will be designated as "no noise". The idea fell somewhat short of the reality east of the Maplewood station.

Maybe NJT could deploy some of the police officers and dogs who throng Newark Penn, Hoboken, and Secaucus to ride the trains and enforce the railroad's rules.

(Good luck with that...)


<http://www.baristanet.com/2011/01/riding-the-quiet-rails/#more-30723&gt;

Story at Boston.com indicates quiet cars started today on the MBTA.

Marty Harrison
Knob Noster, MO

Lackawanna484 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Baristanet, a local NJ website, has a report on
> the introduction of "quiet cars" on NJ Transit.
> The idea is that certain cars will be designated
> as "no noise". The idea fell somewhat short of
> the reality east of the Maplewood station.
>
> Maybe NJT could deploy some of the police officers
> and dogs who throng Newark Penn, Hoboken, and
> Secaucus to ride the trains and enforce the
> railroad's rules.
>
> (Good luck with that...)


Actually, Amtrak introduced "quiet cars" years ago, and they are clearly designated and marked with signs inside the cars. As a result, the passengers in those cars are normally fairly aggressive themselves in "enforcing the railroad's rules" without any help from the crews, much less police officers and dogs.
Then again, perhaps NJT riders are too discrete and dignified to police themselves. Perhaps? :-)

As a side note, they work quite well on VRE commuter trains as well....

I bet you if some person is fined for breaking this rule, guaranteed that they will use the first amendment (Freedom of Speech) in their defense. In this day and age, that wouldn't surprise me.

This is a great idea that, in reality is more necessary on trains that operate outside of regular
commuting hours; eg: nights and weekends. I have been asking NJT for this for years, and have received a plethora of lame excuses. The fact is that most trains operating outside of commuter hours are the noisiest. Lots of 'snookie' types involved in cellphone conversations where every other word is either 'like' or 'you know' ((No, I don't know, until you tell me)) or worse yet obscenities and profanity that have taken over the lexicon nowadays (at concert-hall pitch)

If NJT REALLY wants to help us sorely tired folks, then EVERY train EVERY day should have a 'quiet' car.

The reference to "'snookie' types" (not being a viewer of the NJ TV show, I only know about "snookie" from the publicity photos) makes me think they're the "Valley Girls" of the 21st Century. (Fer suuuure!)

NJT completed a pilot progam on its 3900 series rush hour trains in the later half of 2010 and it was "met with success." So now it is being introduced to all NEC, NJCL, Raritan VAlley, and Midtown Direct trains during peak hours. They say Hoboken trains will have quiet cars later in 2011. For now, it is just trains bound for NYP.

hazegray Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Lackawanna484 Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Baristanet, a local NJ website, has a report on
> > the introduction of "quiet cars" on NJ Transit.
>
> > The idea is that certain cars will be
> designated
> > as "no noise". The idea fell somewhat short of
> > the reality east of the Maplewood station.
> >
> > Maybe NJT could deploy some of the police
> officers
> > and dogs who throng Newark Penn, Hoboken, and
> > Secaucus to ride the trains and enforce the
> > railroad's rules.
> >
> > (Good luck with that...)
>
>
> Actually, Amtrak introduced "quiet cars" years
> ago, and they are clearly designated and marked
> with signs inside the cars. As a result, the
> passengers in those cars are normally fairly
> aggressive themselves in "enforcing the railroad's
> rules" without any help from the crews, much less
> police officers and dogs.
> Then again, perhaps NJT riders are too discrete
> and dignified to police themselves. Perhaps?
> :-)
>
> As a side note, they work quite well on VRE
> commuter trains as well....

Also on the MARC system in MD. (VERY assertive peer policing)

We'll have to see how this works out in NJ.