Chapter 6. The Criticality of Real-time Information

I lived in the NYC metro area for years, and I get particularly grouchy and disgruntled when my travels require that I take a train from Penn Station. Several train lines depart from Penn Station—New Jersey Transit, Long Island Railroad, Amtrak—to name a few. NJ Transit and Amtrak trains share a central schedule, a big board, about the size of five ping pong tables put together end to end, with letters and numbers that click-click-click like the shuffling of a card deck as it shows basic information about the incoming/outbound trains, departure times, and track numbers. While a good way to distribute basic information, the issue is that the tracks are updated within mere minutes of departure time, which means that large crowds stand underneath and around the suspended dashboard, nervously awaiting track information. Click-click-CLICK! The track number appears! Five hundred people clog one skinny escalator as they attempt the descent to...