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Statement on Proposed Rules of Conduct for New York City Subway and Bus Riders Tuesday, November 30, 2004 MTA New York City Transit has proposed the first major changes to its Rules of Conduct for subway and bus riders in about a decade. The NYPIRG Straphangers Campaign is sympathetic with the goal of making the subways safer and we support most of the proposed rule changes. But we have several concerns, which we plan to raise during the 45-day state-mandated public comment period for these proposals. The public comment period began November 24th, when the stated rule changes appeared in the New York State Register (click). We object to the proposed rule that would completely ban taking photographs, film or video in the subways and on buses with limited exceptions. We respect the need for security in the transit system, but believe that there are important values in having photographers document life and conditions on the subways and buses. The Campaign notes that in this year of the subway centennial, the MTA itself has sponsored an exhibition of photographic images "offering a peek into the lives of New Yorkers throughout the decades, from quiet moments reading on a crowded train to grandstanding youths on an elevated platform." Photographers in the MTA-sponsored exhibition include Bruce Davidson and Henri Cartier-Bresson. (See MTA News Release here.) Additionally, The Metropolitan Transportation Authority's own website - www.mta.info - encourages riders to "share original photos about public transportation in the New York metropolitan region." Visitors who go to MTA's website and click on the New York Transit Museum's "education programs" can go to a section called "Community Crossing." The direct web address is: http://www.transitmuseumeducation.org/community.html The proposed rule provides two exceptions that raise serious First Amendment issues of favoring one kind of expression over another. The rule would permit photographs by "members of the press holding valid identification cards issued by the New York City Police Department" or "where written authorization has been provided by NYCTA." No standards are detailed in the proposed rules for issuing such authorizations. The Campaign supports a rule that would clearly prohibit "using the end doors of a subway car to pass from one subway car to another unless directed to do so by" a transit employee or police officer. But urge that the rule be clarified to permit such passage in an emergency situation. New York City Transit has posted the complete text of the rules at http://www.mta.info/nyct/rules/proposed.htm. For More Information, Contact: Neysa Pranger at (212) 349-6460 or (917) 532-0567.
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