I like to peruse the SF Examiner on days when the Comicle is just not funny enough. Last Thursday was one of those days and I was not disappointed. Front page: "Caltrain's Downtown Extension looking for sexier name". That's what is really important about our local train service--the name of the last 1.3 miles of tunnel in EssEff The Joint Powers Board thinks the $4-5 Billion dollar project needs a better brand......never mind that cities up and down the Peninsula are crying for money to do grade separations like at Broadway and electrification still needs money and in view of the long crossing gate SNAFUs some control system upgrades are also in order. On August 28th the gates were down for hours royally screwing up traffic in town.
The extension has been known as the Downtown Extension or alternatively DTX. But Alicia John-Baptiste, president of the urban planning think tank SPUR and a TJPA board member takes the cake. She said the name "strikes me as somewhat masculine and aggressive. It didn't feel very inviting to me." That, dear reader, is a quote! Don't believe me? Here it is. Is "Portal" is suitably feminine? How do we get something non-binary? Hire a new consultant?
I want the train to envelop me in warm, glowing quietude while whisking me to San Jose in a peaceful supportive environment where no a-hole tries to steal my bike.
Posted by: Handle Bard | September 21, 2022 at 07:35 PM
"Hire a new consultant?" Singular?
I'd say it's going to take a lot more than one consultant for a wokeful name change. Way more.
Posted by: MBGA | September 22, 2022 at 06:52 PM