Redundancy? Or clearer communication?

So, a few months back Jenny and I were heading into the Garden State (New Jersey) to see Radiohead play in Liberty State Park, just off the island of Manhattan. While waiting for the NJ Path train, I noticed this phone on the platform. And what struck my attention was the simple fact that the same message needed to be communicated three different ways. I can only imagine how those three or more meetings went at the corporate office. “It just isn’t clear what the phone is for … How can we simplify the message?” And at some point there had to be some sort of approval process from a “higher-up.”

Personally, I believe the original message is clear enough … “Passenger Assistance Telephone.” What else needs to be said? Well apparently, plenty! I just love “Lift for Aid.” That’s great! What kind of “Aid” are we talking about here? The arrow really tops it off. As if there is anything else anywhere nearby that one might possibly be able to lift.

This entry was posted on October 19th, 2008 and is filed under design, found, life, nonsense, ponder, reasons to love nyc. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response or Trackback from your own site.