Geek Soap Box

I am only now catching up on my blog reading — lots of work will do that to you — but this story from the New York City subway needed to be discussed.

There is one train line — the lime-green “G” — that never sets foot on the Isle of Manhattan.  Rather, it traverses a crosstown north/south route that links the bad parts of Queens with…the bad parts of Brooklyn mostly.  I used to have to take this line when I worked in Brooklyn, and believe you me it was quite the daily experience.

Since the line doesn’t enter what most folks colloquially refer to as “the City,” it’s natural to assume that the MTA does not give it the attention and love it might to stations in the Financial District or the Upper East Side.  Hence we get the station “Brodaway.”

What makes the story even more hilarious is the MTA Official’s response that he’s never heard of this glaring typographical error.  Never mind the fact that it’s legendary among subway enthusiasts and been referenced on the Web for over a decade.  In fact, it’s entirely possible that this misspelling has been there since the day the Independent Subway System opened in the 1930s.

But I’m sure now it will be fixed right away, right?