1. No matter how many trains you miss there’s always another one coming (unless of course there’s a malfunction or breakdown, an injured passenger, or smoke either behind you or in front of you from some unexplained source).
2. There are no printed schedules. This saves trees and keeps the platform free of additional litter, which is good because less litter gives the rats one less place to hide.
3. There’s no reason to constantly look at your watch to see how long until the next train will arrive, hence reducing stress and anxiety over being late. Though, looking down the dark incoming tunnel for the lights of an incoming train is fair play as long as you don’t lean over the tracks. That would be bad because you could get hurt and become an “injured passenger,” delaying all the rest of us waiting for a train or already on trains heading towards your station as per the exception in #1.
4. There’s entertainment. Where else can you see a group of four boys do flips, Eskimo rolls past your feet, and other acrobatics, fighting to keep their balance on a moving train? This kind of daredevil behavior in the name of entertainment is what the Big Apple is all about. And what about all the acapella singers, ranchero serenades, and violin concertos? Who needs American Idol when I have American Subway.

5. There are shiny stainless steel poles to hang on to. Where would we be without these? Probably all piled up in a tangle at the back of the car. I especially appreciate the thought that went into their placement. When I’m falling I can almost always grab onto one, which prevents me from falling on and injuring another passenger or injuring myself stopping either of us from becoming an “injured passenger” and leading once again to the exception in #1.

Note that the height of the crossbars does not preclude the possibility of concussions, dislocated shoulders, or the inhalation of your neighbor’s deodorant…or lack thereof.

Now that you know where I’m coming from, you tell me what you like about
New York City’s tunnels of love.

–Straphanger Joe

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Thank god they stopped smoking on the subway there’s no way out. To learn a few facts about smoking and the potential health effects from smoking check out these sites.