The Metro and Poetry in Motion

Inspired by a similar program in the London Underground, the program places poem-placards in the spaces usually reserved for advertisements in subway cars and buses. Since its founding 10 years ago, the program has expanded to 14 cities across the country, reaching 13 million people daily.

In case you may not have noticed, the Los Angeles Metro system has many poems and placards in its busses, trains, and railcars with poems selected from the Poetry Society of America’s committee.

In fact, in April 2009, live poetry readings took place at Union Station. With any luck at all, a similar program will take place next year.

The Poetry Society of America provides an awesome array of resources for all things poetry related and they’re nothing short of amazing. For instance, their resource page for links and sources for Poetry Journals, Poetry Publishers & Small Presses, Literary Organizations, Independent Bookstores, Poetry Colonies, Conferences & Festivals, Contests, Creative Writing Programs, and Children’s Poetry organizations are all diligently organized, and easily accessed at their website.

Also, be sure to check out their comprehensive Article and Feature News story section as they have indexed many of the major projects and happenings across the nation.

To be sure, riding the Metro is environmentally conscious, budget friendly, and allows you time to work and enjoy your surroundings during your ride. But now you also know that you can read great poems at the same time also.

So the choice is yours:

Bury your head in the abyss of ignorance, or get happy and check out a few poems on your local Metro bus.

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