The New York Transit system now insists under penalty of suspension that conductors "point". In Asia this practice is mandatory for engine crews - notably in Japan. Comments on the value of this practice?
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I saw something about the Japanese practice of pointing not that long ago, but I can't remember where. If I remember correctly, all of the passenger rail employees are trained and required to do it. The purpose is to maintain focus on the task at hand. I think there is something to be said for it too, as Japan's passenger service is the safest and most on time in the world.
When it comes to Americans adopting this practice, one thing comes to mind: the movie Gung Ho.
That reference explains the practice perfectly. In New York conductors must "point-and-call" at every station stop.
Sorry, couldn't resist:
Q. According to Ann Landers, what are two things you should never do in bed?
A. Paul Lynde: Point and laugh.
-Hollywood Squares
Mitch
Living in New York for my entire life why do I get the feeling that much of the pointing will not be done with the index finger.......
Either way this is an interesting practice.
Tommy posted:The New York Transit system now insists under penalty of suspension that conductors "point". In Asia this practice is mandatory for engine crews - notably in Japan. Comments on the value of this practice?
I wouldn't say that the MTA "now insists" that conductors point ... the practice has been mandatory since 1996. It's intended to keep conductors alert and it seems like a good idea to me.
There's a video on YouTube about some young kids who had a great idea to have some good natured fun with the mandatory pointing:
Enjoy.
Steven J. Serenska
Hah! I like it.
RSJB18 posted:Living in New York for my entire life why do I get the feeling that much of the pointing will not be done with the index finger.......
Either way this is an interesting practice.
Could you be suggesting the "Bronx Cheer?"
It beats figuring out stage left and stage right every time
I have yet to see the object of pointing to a striped sign with an obscure number. Now if the sign was the name of the station and he was announcing it as he pointed, I could understand. What am I missing here?
Point and call cuts down on not noticing things. Even the Japanese railways admitted they felt silly at first, but not after the safety benefits were so obvious.
For what it's worth, after reading the explanation some time ago I tried a quiet version of this on everyday things because my short-term memory is lousy (ADHD gets better, but it doesn't go away.) Sure enough, if I lay down my keys, point at them and say out loud where they are, I can remember. When I gather up items to carry, naming them as I put them in a container definitely helps. If there were a safety issue involved, I definitely see how it could help.
Big Jim posted:I have yet to see the object of pointing to a striped sign with an obscure number. Now if the sign was the name of the station and he was announcing it as he pointed, I could understand. What am I missing here?
The striped sign is a "Conductor's board" The numbers on it indicate the proper location of the conductor's position (middle of the train) for a given number of cars in the train.
If your conductor's cab stops directly opposite the sign lableled for the number of cars in your train, you know that the train operator at the head end has not overshot or undershot the platform, and thus no doors are going to open where there is not a platform (I've seen this happen--at an elevated station 
) and it is safe to open the passenger doors. There are markers at the end of the station for the train operator indicating stopping points for various train lengths, so the conductor's cab will stop in the same position even if a shorter-than-normal train is being run.
The reason for the possibility of different car counts is that NYC Transit still operates two different lengths of subway car on it's (larger clearance) 'B' division. While the fleets on any one service are typically consistent, NYC subway lines can and do merge, split, and sometimes hopscotch from mainline to mainline over the course of their normal routes, so multiple services intermix on most lines. Depending on the line and station, you may have trains of ten 60' cars, or eight 75' cars.
---PCJ
Thank you PCJ and Mitch! Now that makes sense.
Having worked for the New York City Transit Authority, the explanation given by Railride above is accurate.
Larry
I tried pointing at my wife. She asked why I was pointing. I told her it was so I could remember her name.
It is to the NYC Subway what call out signals are to freights and Amtrak.....!
I noticed that there are cameras at one of the zebras "pointing" at the conductors!
Well, I had one conductor point early this morning on my way home (at Cortlandt) and one not (at DeKalb). Edit: well, just looked at the pic I tried to take of it - she stuck her hand out, but didn't really point.
Thanks for the info, everyone.
David
