According to amNewYork, the MTA is marking Halloween with temporarily renamed stations and themed collectors maps across the subway, Long Island Rail Road and Metro-North Railroad. The promotion runs from Thursday through Saturday, and the agency aims to appeal to families travelling with children in costume.
Renamed stations and stickers
The MTA announced the initiative on Wednesday. Riders can collect stickers that show spooky versions of station names. Among the subway examples cited by the source are "Slime Sq-42 Street", a play on Times Square-42 St, "Chambers St of Horrors", and "Frighton Beach", which replaces Brighton Beach. On the commuter rail side, Grand Central Terminal becomes "Ghoul Central Terminal" and Valley Stream becomes "Valley Scream".
The stickers also replace some subway line logos with Halloween images such as ghosts, bats and pumpkins.
Collectors maps
The MTA has produced orange and black Halloween-themed maps, one for the subway and one for the railroad. According to amNewYork, the maps show the renamed stations and feature images of ghosts and bats.
Timing and locations
According to MTA chief customer officer Shanifah Rieara, the agency selected two locations per borough in the city, along with some locations on the railroads. The renamed signs are expected to be displayed at various locations for the day. Rieara said the promotion starts before Halloween itself, which falls on Saturday, so that riders can join in on Thursday and Friday as well.
The source does not provide further details on which specific stations will display the temporary signs beyond the examples listed above.