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Subway announcements, and the voices behind them, are part and parcel of New York City living. So when news regarding a shift in those audio clips reaches us, our attention is peaked.
Case in point: a new report by The City outlining the MTA's decision to test new audio tracks underground "with on-train announcements from boldface name New Yorkers and in-station promotions for big-ticket events."
According to the outlet "a pair of one-year pilot programs [...] will gauge rider reaction to announcement aboard trains and to some that will, at select stations, play paid advertisements for sporting and entertainment events."
This isn't an entirely new concept.
Just last year, subway riders were treated to a number of audio promos about the then-to-be-released movie Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny.
Even before then, in 2020, Awkwafina partnered with the MTA to promote her Comedy Central TV show, Awkwafina is Nora from Queens. For a week, the actress was the voice heard on the 7 train during announcements.
A year later, in 2021, famous New Yorkers like Edie Falco and Jerry Seinfeld recorded pandemic-era messages inviting commuters to wear masks on the subway.
The new trial run, in effect through the beginning of April 2025, will include a set of guidelines: there will be volume and frequency limits in place and, although "designed to raise money for the agency through fees charged to program partners," according to The City, the ads will have to abide by an advertising policy that prohibits politically-inclined content, the promotion of alcohol or tobacco, and sexually explicit material.
Who knew there was so much to know about those subway announcements that pepper our daily commutes?