Finally, A Campaign I Can Get Behind

I’m a big fan of public transport. Services like trains enable hundreds of people to get from A to B in one go, subway systems help hundreds of thousands of workers get to their jobs every day and even buses have their merits when it comes to cutting congestion in city centers. Because of this, I’m all for improving mass transit systems in any way possible, even through simple changes to make users smile more.

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That’s why I’m getting onboard this excellent new campaign out of Boston, which is calling on city center managers to improve public transit in the city. You might think this means adding more train services, cleaning up stations or even making the city’s subway stations more accessible. No, what this campaign wants is googly eyes stuck to the front of trains.

It’s a simple campaign, but one I think would really brighten Boston up and make it a true global player when it comes to mass transit. The campaign, which was brought to our attention by the folks at CarScoops, was launched by Massachessets residents Arielle Lok and John Sanchez, who argue that Boston’s transit operator the MBTA has a “responsibility to improve the lives of Bostonians.”

What do we want? Googly eyes! When do we want them? Now! Photo: Craig F. Walker/The Boston Globe (Getty Images)

“If the trains can’t be reliable, at least they can be fun and bring a smile to the faces of over a million people per day,” the pair writes in their campaign manifesto. “Compared to the $24 BILLION dollars it will take to fix the T, simply adding Googly eyes to trains could represent a budget of merely a few hundred dollars. Think of all of the new T riders who will come from around the globe to revel in the glory of Boston’s trains.”

The pair is calling for the MBTA to test out its proposal for a few weeks to see how it’s received. They argue this is a similar tact to what’s done in Canada every year, when trains in Vancouver are dressed up like Rudolph for Christmas. If this was done year-round in Boston, they say people’s days will “immediately becomes 10 times better.”

It’s a fair argument, and I’d agree that if city officials can’t dramatically improve public transport in America then they should at least make it more fun to share a delayed, over-crowded train with a bunch of grumpy commuters. Of course, if they want to heavily invest in infrastructure instead, then I’m all for that as well.

If you agree, then you should head down to the march that Lok and Sanchez are organizing in Boston next week. It kicks off April 29 and will see fans of trains and googley eyes march on the MBTA offices. I’d say I’ll be there too, but I might be tied up launching a campaign of my own for the London Underground, but we’ll have to wait and see.