Torture Radio

I pity anyone who misses their Orange Line connection at North Station. I had that misfortune this evening and was forced to listen to T Radio. It's frustrating enough to stand on the platform as the train rolls away. What made my wait worse was listening to the station after the music cycle ended. I was serenaded to three minutes of commercial jingles - the same jingles I ignore when they play on TV - thanked by some guy for listening, and then "treated" to the Kingston Trio's hokey Charley on the MTA song. Are shivers running down your spine yet?

Anyway, I tried to escape into the tunes on my iPod, but resistance was futile! The music played too loudly and the speakers in the station are set evenly apart, meaning there's no where to run. In essence, I'm paying to be part of a captive audience for a service I'd rather not listen to. What's unfortunate is that when the station returns to its playlist the music is fairly bland. It's as though the T is attempting to pacify its ridership and keep us from noticing service delays and the general condition of the system. But, if the Boston Metro is correct in stating that the T will create blackout zones with no radio service, I know where I'll be waiting for the train from now on.