The sad dumbification of announcements

[tbtc]

How dare the modern railway change things to make them more understandable to everyday passengers?

It seems to be common on threads to bemoan attempts to be customer friendly, which often sound like "why do TOCs keep announcing things that I already know" from regular travellers on here who don't appreciate that infrequent passengers joining at each station may need reminders/ explanations of things that seasoned enthusiasts take for granted

All the 'inclusive' liveries and the like count for nothing if we don't also 'include' the 50% of population with below average intelligence (or the 90% of British people who never or rarely use trains)

I want the railway to work. I don't care whether we refer to the "rail station" or the "train station". If that feels symbolic of some kind of national decline in people's eyes then fair enough but I'm personally more bothered about what works. If people understand "divides" better than "separates" (or the other way round) then so be it

This is the railway we're talking about though, which seems wedded to various things for traditions' sakes

(Just an aside but there seem to be an increasing number of thread titles that seem rather one sided, instead of people arguing their point - words like "disaster"/"fiasco" and now "sad dumbification")

 

[3141]

Several of the SWR changes did make announcements simpler and probably easier to understand. But I suspect there was some element of seeking to do things differently from SWT. Introducing the word "carriages" in place of "coaches" is an example.

 

[TT-ONR-NRN]

Using language that is unnecessarily complex or abstruse is discriminatory, which is not acceptable for a public service.

It is absolutely absurd to suggest that speaking announcements in English in England is discriminatory. What tripe.

 

[Russel]

I've been on a couple of trains recently where the auto-announcements haven't been working, it was quite refreshing, no one seemed to be panicking and the world didn't come crashing down around us.

 

[sickboy]

Are people really that concerned about the words used when they arrive at the railway train station...?
depends on what people you’re on about?
But most people don’t seem bothered about anything, as long as they’ve got a WiFi signal these days.

 

[Krokodil]

How dare the modern railway change things to make them more understandable to everyday passengers?

Is "seperates" really more understandable than "divides"?

I wouldn't mind some Germanic brevity though. "Next stop: Anytown - end station, doors left" provides more information with fewer syllables than current systems in the UK use.

 

[stevieinselby]

It is absolutely absurd to suggest that speaking announcements in English in England is discriminatory. What tripe.

Sesquipedalian vocalising with excessive utilisation of uncommon verbiage obstructs comprehension.

If we can say things in a way that makes it easier for more people to understand, why would we not do that?
Why deliberately make announcements harder for people to understand?

 

[TT-ONR-NRN]

Sesquipedalian vocalising with excessive utilisation of uncommon verbiage obstructs comprehension.

If we can say things in a way that makes it easier for more people to understand, why would we not do that?
Why deliberately make announcements harder for people to understand?

It is one thing to say it is helpful to simplify English for ease of access for tourists, it is quite another to suggest not doing so is discriminatory.