Tuesday 3 July 2012

Making any sense of this, Warsaw?

Photographed yesterday evening on a 401 bus heading for Al. Witosa, below. Can you make out what vitally important information is being imparted by Warsaw's transit authority ZTM?

Clue: it's important. As of Monday, 2 July, bus timetables have changed. Some bus routes will disappear for good; some will disappear over the school holidays and reappear in September; some will run less frequently. The trouble is that passengers can't make out which lines are affected because the information has been printed double-sided on translucent paper. Keeping passengers informed is very important. Paying attention to detail in how it's done is equally important.

Sitting here at home with access to the excellent ZTM website, I can tell what's running, what's not and what's running rarely. It's less easy to tell when you're on a bus and wondering whether your connecting bus will soon arrive as you change to another line. Not everyone has a smartphone...

This time last year:
Farewell to separate alcohol tills at Polish supermarkets

This time two years ago:
Twin turboprop cargo planes at Okęcie

This time three years ago:
To the countryside, Czachówek

This time four years ago:
Why I feel freer in Poland than in the UK

This time five years ago:
Stormy summer night

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

"the information has been printed double-sided on translucent paper"

Hate to say it but it sounds like a 'Polish Joke' - or maybe should be a new one

What were they thinking - would be interesting to get a statement from the department that is responsible for printing/design and then also for the one responsible for placement - nobody noticed before you?

Paulina Wawrzyńczyk said...

Every foreigner that I know that use the public transportation in Warsaw adores it! I'm always astonished but it has to be truly good.