can you hear me now? ttc tackling garbled subway announcements - digital signage

“Attention cus-----s on Line ---, we are cu--ently experien----a del--eastbo---at B-------tion. S---Has been s-----ded, and ---ttle b---
S on the road.
"In the list of the most common complaints for TTC passengers, the incoherent service announcement came in the front, behind unexpected subway closures and terrible short-turn trams.
Anyone who rides regularly has an irritating experience: the subway car speakers send out potentially important messages, but the message is very quiet, full of static and desperately unintelligible.
The poor quality of the subway announcement is so notorious that in 2016 it was in T-
Shirts for sale at TTC swag store.
But according to TTC, widespread frustration will soon be the past.
As part of $16. 6-
The agency is replacing its 20-1 million radio system upgraded to the entire transit networkyear-
Old analog subway radio system with statusof-
Digital Art.
Jim Ross, deputy chief operating officer of TTC, who is in charge of Metro operations, predicted: "Customers will hear the difference in quality . ".
He admitted that the garbled subway announcement "has always been one of the things mentioned in our customer satisfaction survey.
"The current system is more complex than most passengers may realize.
The voice heard by passengers in the subway compartment is usually not the driver, but the TTC staff of the agency's traffic control center, which is located in an undisclosed location on the subway network.
"Because this is simulated, you get a lot of distortion," Ross said . ".
"It has a lot of restrictions.
"In addition to the poor sound quality, the simulation system has only four channels, and through which traffic control must communicate with passengers, subway staff and any workers who may be in the tunnel.
In the moment after the delay event, when TTC employees scramble to solve the problem, the channel can be tied up quickly.
That's why workers who publish subway announcements tend to speak too fast to understand, says Ross.
"A lot of the time, the reason is that they are trying to clear a channel so we can use it for other things," he said . ".
The new radio system is called Tetra (
Short for ground cluster radio)
TTC will be allowed to operate seven channels underground.
TTC has started upgrading its ground radio system and will start working on the Metro Radio Network later this year.
It will take a year to complete the subway upgrade.
Adam Cohoon, a member of the accessibility committee for advocacy group TTCriders, said any changes to the currently problematic system could be an improvement, "but that's only half of the work.
He believes that these announcements should also be visually displayed on the screen of the subway car.
He said: "There are many passengers who are not listening well or deaf . . . . . . Any information transmitted through audio should also be placed in the text message . ".
Better radio communication is part of a broader goal outlined by TTC in its new five goals
Annual company plan to keep customers informed of the "real situation"
Time information everywhere.
For this purpose, TTC plans to install digital signage in more locations and test "self"
Provide services for touch screens near the station entrance, including travel planning tools and community information.
The agency also intends to launch a new information system through audio announcements, text alerts, third-
Party app and platform screen.
Outdated communication systems that pass service information to drivers are also being replaced.
The TTC board will debate its corporate plan at a special meeting on Thursday, which sets out the agency's strategic vision until 2022.