Mobiles make the world go round, but do we want them on the tube?

Zara Rabinowicz Writes...

Mobile phones probably top the list as the one gadget none of us could live without, indeed my battered Samsung D600 is my trusty companion, totally replacing the need for a land line, and on the odd day when I leave it at home accidentally I feel strangely naked. There is a problem with mobiles though, and that would be other people. While I don’t object to others using their phone, I intensely dislike hearing a one sided loud conversation, and when people text message without turning their mobile onto silent I have to grit my teeth at the annoying beeps. I know I’m guilty of the same offence, but that doesn’t really make it any better. Then there’s those times you try to talk and text, which inevitably mean you bump into people/lampposts/ fall over, which can be quite disconcerting.

At least one is assured a modicum of peace when one enters the sauna of the tube on the long commute home, but not any more! A trial project starts in 2008 that will allow people to conduct conversations whilst underground! I have mixed feelings about this service.

On one hand, it would be extremely useful to be able to contact people while travelling, as all to often I’ve had friends delayed by faulty trains and have stood drumming my heels and cursing them when they turn up late. It would be great to be able to text to let someone know if you are running late, or if something exciting comes up that you wanted to attend. On the other hand, if you can access your mobile underground there would be a lot more noise and instead of the uncomfortable silence and children chatter that is the norm of most journeys, you would be surrounding by chattering clattering people.

Unsurprisingly 53 per cent of people do not want to roam while underground as enduring the ‘can you hear me? CAN YOU HEAR ME? I’M ON THE TUBE..’ doesn’t fill anyone with excitement. This is another step in the generation which finds it scary to switch off, indeed we now check emails on our lunch break, twitter from home and facebook daily, now it seems the one area of respite is being taken over and there is nothing we can do to prevent it.

The mobile itself has evolved from a mere communications device into an all important fashion accessory, with a new style and colour released practically every week, and designers from Prada to Cath Kidston getting in on the action. Our consumerist society is more and more obsessed with getting the latest model, newest ringtone and customisable wallpaper, but these accessories while attractive shouldn’t be the deciding factor on a phone purchase.

I imagine if mobile usage became the norm on tubes, mobile phone theft would also rise, as no longer would potential thieves have to chance what might be in your bag, as you'd be displaying your iPhone/Nokia to the world at large.

Instead of making mobiles work underground I think it might be useful to reinstall payphones on the tube, so should you need to get a message to somebody you can, and keep the chatter to above ground. After all, if we don't have air conditioning yet, we definitely don't need mobiles down there!

Zara Rabinowicz writes for Shiny Shiny, Star Trip, and Dollymix and has problems texting while she talks.