>Derek Woodlands wrote:
>
>> I'm waiting for the "No Mugging" areas to be introduced on Sydney
>> platforms. ;-)
>Have you seen those in New York? The subway stations have an area
>painted with yellow lines with signs that say "Off hours waiting area"
>where you can wait for your train under the eye of the token booth clerk
>(usually watching via a video camera). These areas are usually in the
>middle of the platforms, which also coincides with the carriages of the
>trains where the little cabs for the "conductors" (we'd call them
>guards) are.
>So Sydney's platforms have got like NY since my last visit? <g>
Absolutely. Most platforms have a marked "Night-safe" area, where the
magic blue lines are supposed to protect you from muggers. Half the
carriages are locked up, so the passengers travel in only those that
can be supervised by the guard (who is identified by a blue light). A
recent policy decision by the Government intimated that all trains
might soon carry security guards at night.
When I visited people in the Bronx and travelled by the "El" at all
hours of the night, it was common to wait at the ticket-booth
downstairs and hurtle upward when the rumble of an approaching train
was heard. I've now seen people doing this at Circular Quay, though
that might be related to the need to wait until the last minute to
find out whether a train is approaching on the inner or outer circle.
Geoff Lamvbert