I'm going to be big broadway star!!!...if only I could be dscovered...oh what a dream..."

So the station of choice for our visit was Times Square. Before I go into what observations my group I made, let’s just start with the facts:

This station is big. What a statement! But in essence it is its size that is so useful to our understanding. The design of the subway system is to accommodate. Because of its location, it is used by mostly every person. It is home to natives and those pesky tourists that take thousands of pictures outside the station; but we’ll get to that.

There are a few different kinds of people that I’ve observed in my many years of traveling the subway. Those that know the subway like the back of their hands, those that are adequately intelligent about it but sometimes need a little guidance and those, (clearing of throat-tourists) that absolutely have no idea where they are going. Let me explain how we can distinguish these experts from the umm….not so experts. Typically the experts are wearing suits or some type of employee uniform that gives an obvious indication that they work in the area. They know exactly where to go and do not need to look at the obnoxious signs that hang everywhere. They walk confidently without reproach and are the people that are most willing to give help- well, let me see, they are probably the ones that look decent enough to ask. They give off a vibe of “not going to mug me” or purposely lead me in the wrong direction towards Spanish Harlem (no offense to Spanish Harlem- it’s just that I don’t want to go there and probably never will).


Moving on, the people who make up the category of almost expert are the average New Yorkers. They use the subway, but probably don’t know exactly where they are going because they don’t ride it that often. While someone may think they don’t use the map-they do, which is smarter than not looking and getting lost. They have a purpose and know where they are going but make sure to look at the signs, check route schedules on the walls, and are at the metro card machines because they do not carry the pass because they don’t know when they will use it next. (True New Yorkers should and do walk everywhere mostly; if there is time, you should just walk uptown- don’t be lazy.)

Finally, yes, what we’ve been waiting for- and what Times Square is full of. There are more tourists in this area than actual natives. They don’t all look like the stereotypical bag-carrying, teary-eyed, country bumpkin: but they come close. They always have those mini-cams and try to capture every waking moment of the giant Cup of Noodle soup cup, MTV, and every other flashy, obnoxiously lit storefront. They stop for the music shows, dancing, women with saws, and the boutiques in the stations like Penn or grand Central Station. They spend forever racing back and forth between maps, carry large bags, get on one stop and realize they screwed up and went the opposite direction. It is pitiful but you can’t help to feel sorry for these lost puppies in the wilderness because it isn’t their entire fault. This station is huge, disorientating, and full of confusing paths that take forever to walk.


These paths that connect to different trains are spread all across the station. This is why we may call it a true “hub”. It is an enclosed space that is its own world. With its glitzy sign over hanging adjacent to the flashy McDonald’s across the street, it seems like you are walking down into a trendy club rather than an actual subway station. This gives it an air of glamour. When a friend was with me a few months ago who had never been to the city- she had asked me if it was a restaurant, surprised by the light-bulb sign. To make it seem like it isn’t and to curve the steps so they are not visible-sort of make it, at least in my own opinion- inaccessible. There are people around that try to sell you things as you enter. People just congregate to meet friends-not just a train hub but also a common meeting ground such as the clock in Grand Central Station. This is unusually true in the actual station. While in most stations the environment screams “keep moving or you’ll get trampled”, this station is filled with musicians (or women with saws) that attract tourists and bored people with nothing better to do. This creates a scene and makes people interact with reason to stare- something usually forbidden in the station.
Besides these performances, the square is also a huge place for businesses- whether it is the small newsstands built into the station or outside. It is booming with commerce. The message that Times Square sends is a very corporate one with little warm feeling at all. Even as a native you might get lost. The tourists, although extremely annoying, seem to lose their way. (Maybe they should get their eyes out of the video camera). With the expensive restaurants and the theatre district right there, they may feel like they are experiencing New York by being right there. But really, in essence, they completely bypass what the true New York is like. They stay uptown and instead of opening up their minds for the adventure they hoped to see, they settle for the trampled over road and stay confined to this area.

Furthermore, Time Square has a very wide street. In cases where there is a street as wide as this, it creates an imbalance of community of the people. The streets are always crowded, especially near TKTS, and one feels anonymous-or lost in the crowd. In regards to “the people” trying to take it over again- there are some street vendors and people giving out the Daily News and other promotional offers for locally owned comedy clubs in the area. The people are also selling fake IDs which attract the young community from the other areas of the city where it is cheaper to live in. On that note, Times Square is really not livable at all. There are no local supermarkets or drug stores. There is no library or community hospital. There are no parks for children. Nothing about this area would foster a healthy living environment for children-even without all the drugs and pornography that used to be here.