4 ms·

London has the Underground. Something that sounds generic actually is well known to the locals and is part of the culture, the identity, the attraction of a pla

London has the Underground. Something that sounds generic actually is well known to the locals and is part of the culture, the identity, the attraction of a place. Same story here.

WastingMyTime89 4y ago
Everyone calls it the tube there but still.
- sangnoir 4y ago
  As a non-local, when I hear "tube" I think toothpaste, swimming and repairing tire punctures. Mass transit may not even be in my top 5 - and that's fine. Human language ambiguity and locals have their shibboleths - we don't have to optimize for tourists.
  - OJFord 4y ago
    Swimming?
    - sangnoir 4y ago
      Another shibboleth: donut-shaped inflatable pool floaties are called "inner tubes" 'round here.
      - OJFord 4y ago
        Oh! To be honest I'm not actually sure what we call those ('pool inflatables' is all I can think of, somewhat generic) but I don't think it's tubes/inner tubes.
OJFord 4y ago
The equivalent (similarly generic) name is 'the tube' as sibling commenter points out, which Transport for London doesn't use as far as I'm aware, but even if they did, they don't have the same goals as far as I'm aware. One might think it'd be similarly aiming to capture the hearts and minds of tourists, but TfL's been so aggressively pro-Oyster, then/now contactless, that afaict it's always been just about as hard as possible for tourists while still being convenient for Londoners. It makes some sort of sense, it's subsidised by the London taxpayer after all - so it is 'by Londoners for Londoners' - but I think surely it would be possible simultaneously to make it easier for and capture more money from tourists. I digress - point was I think to be that TfL doesn't really care about brand, especially not globally. Maybe I'm wrong to assume that 'the met' does.