DISCUSS: Best Subway

[wjfox]

Please discuss this week's topic here.

[redstone]

Best in terms of most beautiful design is useless.... unless we start a most beautiful subway thread.

I say effieciency and others count more.

[wjfox]

This contest is for best overall.

This means everything including the design, efficiency, capacity, architecture, history, character, etc.

[redstone]

London has history, architecture but not really so efficient....

Other cities have modern looking designs but greater efficiency.... (like Singapore, honestly)

[hkskyline]

For design, efficiency, and capacity, I'd pick a newer system with smart card capabilities, crowd control corridors, and easy interchange transfers, such as Hong Kong's MTR.

For architecture, history, and character, I'd pick Moscow.

[redstone]

HK..... hmmm.....

Singapore has a fully automated heavy subway line (as opposed to light rail).

[Lucky 24]

Moscow

[hkskyline]

Automated Subway Opens in Copenhagen
By CORINNE LaBALME
24 November 2002
The New York Times

Copenhagen has opened the first stage of its automated subway system. The first 11 stations of the system, the Metro, are on a line stretching 6.8 miles from Norreport, west of downtown, to Vestamager, to the south, and Lergravsparken, to the east. There are stations near popular destinations like Amalienborg Palace, the Royal Theater and Copenhagen University.

The trains, with three cars each, travel at an average speed of 25 miles an hour. Though there is no driver, stewards ride each train to help passengers and inspect tickets. Button-operated ''call points'' allow passengers with special needs, like teachers with children on school field trips, to open the doors for longer periods.

The Metro runs daily from 5 a.m. to 1 a.m., and all night on weekends; it will be on a 24-hour daily schedule by the end of 2003.

Designed by the Italian company Ansaldo, each three-car train can carry 96 seated and 204 standing passengers and can accommodate wheelchairs, baby carriages and bicycles. Roughly half the finished system will run above ground; glass pyramids bring daylight to the underground stations.

By May, the system will reach Copenhagen's most populated area, Frederiksberg, and by the end of next year it will extend farther west, to Vanlose. When completed in 2007, the 13-mile system will have 22 stations and link midtown with Copenhagen Airport.

[npinguy]

London, New York, Moscow.

those are the BIIIIIG 3.


But you have to also include Madrid and Paris

[Brice]

Originally Posted by npinguy

London, New York, Moscow.

those are the BIIIIIG 3.


But you have to also include Madrid and Paris

There's no fully automated lines in London, Moscow and Madrid.

Paris has 2 lines. NY 1

Paris and London have already a contact less system to open turnsti;es. NY, Madrid and Moscow don't eaven know what this system is.

[Peyre]

Originally Posted by Brice

There's no fully automated lines in London, Moscow and Madrid.

Paris has 2 lines. NY 1

Paris and London have already a contact less system to open turnsti;es. NY, Madrid and Moscow don't eaven know what this system is.

London had the first automated line. Victoria line

[elkram]

Originally Posted by Peyre

London had the first automated line. Victoria line

L'express Expo / the Expo Express opened to the public 28 April 1967, the year before the Victoria line came on stream -- its last day of service was sometime October 1972 -- although fully automated, fair organizers thought it best to staff the automatic trains with 'drivers' in the front 'cabs' so as to not freak out guests (passengers) waiting on the platforms -- it was the first fully automatic train in the world.

http://davesrailpix.com/odds/qu/htm/mwf01.htm

Cheers,
Chris

[nick_taylor]

redstone - I think you'll be suprised to know that the network runs at around 97% - thats pretty damn special



hkskyline - MTR's network is nice, but lacks the immense size other networks, have which are also larger, denser and more connected. Also Singapore offers a nicer all-round package to be honest.

Originally Posted by Brice

There's no fully automated lines in London, Moscow and Madrid.

Paris has 2 lines. NY 1

Paris and London have already a contact less system to open turnsti;es. NY, Madrid and Moscow don't eaven know what this system is.

Actually thats wrong, London was the first city in the world to put in place an a full-scale automatic railway line: the Victoria Line of 1968 (37 years old now). It uses an ATO (Automatic Train Operation) system which has been implemented over the decades on other London Underground lines (eg Northern, Jubilee, etc...) and railway networks across the globe.

The New York Subway though has been lagging behind other world cities and has only just brought in this year the OPTO (One Person Train Operation) system on the BMT Canarsie Line. The Victoria Line though is just about to enter the next phase of automation with entire new rolling stock, I am unsure whether this will mean that the entire line becomes entirely fully-automatic - ie no human presence whatsoever.

That said London also has the DLR which is fully automatic semi-light/heavy rail network similar to the Vancouver SkyTrain with 34 stations (6 stations U/C, 5 stations Approved + 5 stations Proposed).

Also contactless cards, Platform Screen Door's and Electronic Display Boards are things New York seems to be lagging behind in unfortunately.



That said - London for me - the complete package of excellent + diverse station design, history, innovation, modern amenities, inconicity, size, future projects and efficiency.

[Mojito]

I've only seen and travelled nine systems in Europe, so I choose one of them, because I cannot judge others. And then I choose London. Why?

Originally Posted by nick-taylor

(...)

That said - London for me - the complete package of excellent + diverse station design, history, innovation, modern amenities, inconicity, size, future projects and efficiency.

I couldn't say it better, so I fully agree with this! London is iconic. In my opinion more than any other system in the world.

[coth]

Originally Posted by nick-taylor

That said - London for me - the complete package of excellent + diverse station design...

[coth]

Originally Posted by Brice

Paris and London have already a contact less system to open turnsti;es. NY, Madrid and Moscow don't eaven know what this system is.

just for a note - moscow metro was the first metro system in europe, implemented usage of smart cards on september 1 1998.

[IshikawajimaHarima]

after all tokyo is best in the world...

[Peyre]

London- Size, effeciency despite age, pioneered the whole concept, architecture, character, branding

Tokoyo - Effeciency and Size

Moscow- Arhictecture wise

[londonindyboy]

new delhi is the best subway. its newly built its much more comfortable then london. as you know london is a very cocld city still they dont have any heating system or anything and delhi is a very hot city as you know and they have a/c system which makes it very comfortable. and also it doesn't get packed like the ones in london because the trains are much bigger as well overall its 10 times cheaper.

[IshikawajimaHarima]

Tokyo - Efficiency, Size, Punctual, Lots of clean & modern stations/platforms, Lots of clean & cool design & hightech cars