6
1863
£17.5bn
IMAGES: GETTYGOING UNDERGROUND
FROM THE OLDEST TO THE BUSIEST, WE GET THE LOWDOWN ON THE
WORLD’S SUBTERRANEAN METRO SYSTEMS. WORDS: NICOLA TRUPTHE INFOTHE NUMBER OF STATIONS
ON THE CARMELIT IN
HAIFA, ISRAEL — ONE OF
THE WORLD’S SMALLEST
SUBWAY SYSTEMS. IT
HAS JUST FOUR CARS,
SIX STATIONS AND ONE
1.1-MILE TUNNEL.The cost of building
Saudi Arabia’s newRiyadh Metro system,
which is due to
launch this year.FIGURES FOR ANNUAL NUMBER OF PASSENGERS, IN BILLIONSThe year in which
the London
Underground, the
world’s oldest
underground
railway
system, opened.WORLD’S BUSIEST METRO SYSTEMS
Most accessible subway systems
SOURCES: ATLAS OBSCURA; VISITSTOCKHOLM.COM; MTA.INFO; WEFORUM.ORG; TFL.GOV.UKTOKYOMOSCOWSHANGHAIBEIJINGSEOULNEW YORK CITYNEW DELHIGUANGZHOUMEXICO CITYHONG KONGLONDON3.462.372.041.991.891.811.791.731.681.601.06T-CENTRALEN, STOCKHOLM
More than 90 of Stockholm’s
100 metro stations are
decorated with unique artwork.
T-Centralen was the first to be
styled this way when it opened
in 1957; today, its cave-like Blue
Line platform is painted in a
pretty blue-and-white motif.KOMSOMOLSKAYA, MOSCOW
First opened in 1952,
Komsomolskaya is one of the
most dramatic stations on the
Moscow Metro, with a vaulted
yellow baroque ceiling, marble
columns and chandeliers.TOLEDO, NAPLES
Decorated in a different colour
on each level, with a glistening
blue ceiling mosaic and LED
light boxes displaying images
of rolling waves, Toledo Metro
Station is a sight to behold.beautiful stations
percentage of stations with step-free access
TAKE THREE
IN NUMBERSNEW YORK
CITY SUBWAY472
The number of stations on the
system, around 60% of which
are underground.180 ft
The distance beneath
street level of 191st Street
— the deepest station on
the network.31 miles
The longest possible journey
with no change of trains, from
207th Street in Manhattan to
Far Rockaway in Queens.SHANGHAI
METROSEOUL
SUBWAYMADRID
METROTOKYO
METRO100% 100% 53% 51% 33%
MEXICO CITY
METROTRAVEL GEEKS
142 nationalgeographic.co.uk/travel