February 28, 2007 12:24 | Montreal

metro

A dirt poor article written about the "top 11 subway systems n the world". Montreal is 8:

Highlights: Diverse, beautiful architecture and unique station art (each station is designed by a different architect). Pleasant riding experience (smooth rides: the trains run on a rubber surface to reduce the screech of train cars). Trains are frequent and fairly comfortable.

(I've been on 6 of them--London, Paris, Tokyo, NYC, Montreal and Hong Kong--not counting the ultra new, clean and expensive one in Delhi, and the disappointing BART in San Francisco. Worth mentioning that Singapore's and Hong Kong's could be twins.)

Also, the write-up of the Tokyo system is totally ridiculous. Instead of mentioning that the system is made up of both extensive underground lines and above ground lines, and that the entire system is not run by some transit authority but rather a handful of *totally separate* corporations... they mention the Ueno Zoo Monorail?! WTF?
(AND the second picture is of a Shinkansen bullet train, not a subway train. Baka.)

Bleh, why did I bother writing this? ;)

Comments

Interesting article. I would have mentioned that the Hong Kong Metro is the best marked system that I have ever been on.

The LEDs on the maps within the cars that mark your progress through the systems mean you're never left wondering where you are if you mind wanders for a station on two.


i was just happy to see montreal in there. the NYC one is so damn loud, though, i was offended by its presence on the list.


Interesting that none of my favorites are on this list. Singapore, Lisbon, Copenhagen.

BART is a wonderful system: it has lovely, large, carpeted cars with padded cloth seat covers. However, these homey benefits are also downsides: many cars are 30+ years old and have accumulated vomit, cola, feces and semen stains from those many years of service.

If the cars were cleaned out in some kind of comprehensive way, the service could be great. Instead, it makes you feel like you're sitting on a sofa in an alley behind a strip club. Or in a dentist's office inhabited by migrating baboons off and on for a generation.

If you happen to get on a clean car, and if you don't go at rush hour, BART can be pretty nice, though.