Monday, February 9, 2004

Metro Momento 2

Your train is crowded, not overcrowded



More spinned against than spinning, The Rail Safety and Standards Board has banned the term "overcrowding", saying that crowding is a healthy sign of the popularity of the railway system. The piece in Metro says that "While a journey in a confined, unventilated space may be uncomfortable, it is not dangerous, the watchdog has concluded". Cathy Gilleece of said watchdogs said: "Our project is about crowding and that's what we are calling it".



Now just don't think this rigid use of terminology is a 21st century spin thing. It reminded me of a statement from 1955, when the then Chairman of London Transport, Sir John Eliot, helpfully responded to reports of passenger discomfort, with: "They are not crammed in. They cram themselves in".

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