OMFG WTF MTA?

The Working Families Party is warring with NYC for their refusal to allow a subway advertising campaign complaining about recently announced cuts in service. At issue is the “obscene internet shorthand” used in the ads.

The MTA is not ROTFL at parody signs that use cheeky acronyms to criticize City Hall. “WTF?” asks one of two posters the Metropolitan Transportation Authority has refused to display on subways and buses. “OMFG,” declares the second of the “Service Nightmare” posters, which mimic official service-change bulletins and were rejected as unsuitable by the MTA. The campaign was created by the Working Families Party, which contends Mayor Bloomberg has been “missing in action” during the authority’s fiscal crisis, leaving riders on track for sweeping reductions in bus and subway service. But transit officials rejected the spots because the acronyms imply obscene language that many riders may find “offensive, improper or in bad taste,” MTA spokesman Kevin Ortiz said. The ads also look too much like the real thing, using subway-line logos to form the suggestive acronyms, according to the MTA. Some riders might believe they are real authority bulletins, officials said – or that the authority agrees with the political message.

Beginning on June 27th there will be no more W or Z trains. About two dozen bus routes will also be deleted.