It's official. Like, really official.
Transit updates will now be delivered in tandem with brilliant emojis on the WNYC's new Subway Agony Index.
Enough with cold, indifferent apps and services that fail to acknowledge the elation that comes in realizing the trains are actually running on time, or how desperately infuriating it is when they're not.
The Subway Agony Index takes passenger's feelings into account, and they want to know how you feel too.
Their website asks, "Let us know if our scoring matches your feelings." Which we can all appreciate.
For all those New Yorkers out there who are all too used to communicating our feelings with emoticons, this feels a little bit like coming home. Like, we've been doing this for years. Thank you, for catching up.
WNYC's data is drawn from MTA real-time data feeds, which is scored on an agony scale based on how the train's real frequency compares to its scheduled frequency.
Unhappy points, according to WNYC's website, are added during rush hour along stretches where more people enter stations than exit. Their calculations are also subject to change with feedback.
For every subway rider who's been agonizing alone for months, we can all rejoice in hallelujah, as we will no longer suffer in solitude.
Finally, there's an official train reporting service that not only understands we have feelings, but knows what those feelings look like as emojis... !
Check out Your Prayers Have Finally Been Answered… on a NYC Subway Platform.