Subway

The Subway or Metro
By Zach

A subway is made up of trains that run underground in tunnels and are used to rapidly transport people. Similar to trains, subways usually run on two rails, but a third rail gives electricity to power the subway train. A subway is also known as a 'metro.'

A typical subway is made up of multiple cars for carrying passengers. An average subway carries 40,000 passengers in one hour. The subway in Moscow carries 3.2 billion passengers per year. This makes the Moscow system the largest subway in the world, considering how many people use the system. Subways usually run in highly populated cities.

To ride on a subway, you park your car in an above ground parking lot (or get a ride), and then walk down steps that lead you into the underground tunnel. You have to pay in order to ride the subway.

Subways are found all around the world. Some of them are New York City, London, and Moscow. If the tracks are elevated above the ground, it may be called an elevated train, the El-train, The El or The L. For example, in Chicago, Illinois there is an above ground subway system called the Chicago L. To get more examples click here.

One reason people use subways is because they get you from one place to another very quickly. They can go as fast as 80 mph. Some of the largest subway systems in the world can cover as much as 100 miles. Since they go so fast, a lot of people can move around entire cities very quickly. Subways are also good because they don’t get stuck in traffic.

The first subway opened in 1863 in London, England. It used a steam locomotive for power. Subways started using electricity in the 1890’s. In its first year, the London subway carried over 9 million passengers using 4 miles of track. Today the London system is still the longest underground railway in the world, covering about 244 miles.

Subways are a very efficient form of ground transportation. As cities have become larger, subways have also become larger. More people ride subways today than ever before.

Citations

Online Resources

Reynolds, Robert. "The Subway Page." October 2004 <http://www.reed.edu/~reyn/transport.html>.

"Worlds Largest Subway Systems." Infoplease. October 2004 <http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0762446.html>.

Image Citations

Copyrighted images of subways from "Microsoft Office Online" <http://office.microsoft.com/clipart/default.aspx?lc=en-us&cag=1> (October-March, 2004-2005). Clip art available only to licensed users for non-commercial purposes.