Second Ave. Sagas

The R160s are still a bit confused

Written by

Benjamin Kabak

in

A Confused N Train

Where: Don’t let the photo confuse you; that’s an N train, and it’s not an Atlantic Ave-Pacific St. Rather, it was en route to 14th St./Union Square on a Sunday night two weeks ago.

What: One very confused train (and, thus, some very confused passengers). On Sunday, June 29, at a time when, according to the service alerts, Brooklyn-bound N and R trains were supposed to be running over the Manhattan Bridge to DeKalb Ave., this train was suffering an identity crisis. With a W label affixed to its route map and the map itself stuck on Atlantic/Pacific since the time I boarded it at Times Square, the train did not know what to do. It didn’t run over the Manhattan Bridge; it wasn’t a W; and it couldn’t really handle all the confusion.

What good is new technology if it’s too hard to harness?

Comments

7 responses to “The R160s are still a bit confused”

  1. Chris

    This isn’t the first time I’ve seen this. The R160s are NOTORIOUS for having maps that don’t synch up with reality. I’ve pulled into Times Square on an N train that says the next stop is Astoria Blvd. More often than you’d think, the maps are often out of service completely on one or two of the displays in each car.

    Reply
  2. Adam G

    Is it just me, or are the R142s running with the wrong strip maps (e.g. map for the 2 on the 5 or vice versa) more frequently lately as well?

    The R160 map being messed up thing is a real annoyance for me. I live in Brooklyn Heights and frequently come home late from Park Slope and often end up having to ask the conductor if the train is going via bridge (will bypass my home stop) or tunnel, since the maps are wrong so often.

    Reply
  3. ScottC

    From what I understand, it is not so much a technology problem as a user problem – i.e. the conductors still haven’t learned the system or don’t put in the right route changes. As for the 142s, the rumor is that they too will be retrofitted with the FIND system.

    Reply
  4. akapluto

    yeah, i dont understand these trains either. the digital field shows the first stop and the last stop, but skips several in the midddle. iv lived in nyc 20 years (altho admittedly, im only 20 yrs old) and now i have to take a map w me on the q just to figure out wtf im headed. stick to the old newer trains, the ones w the little dots and arrows (commonly used on the 4/5/6/1/2/3 lines) and well/I’LL be happy

    Reply
  5. karenm

    I didn’t know they ever worked.

    The first one I was ever on had it wrong, and I see fewer that are broken than working.

    Same goes for the video screen tv thing.

    Reply
  6. jefferson.jackson

    i wonder what line(s) are getting the 160s next???

    Reply
  7. Kevin Xie

    Agreed because the R160 that i took today had a W as the interior (time Next Stop) It also had a Max deadlock obtained on the left side. it’s on the R160 #8889.

    Reply

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