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The tube is great (less so when they're striking or there's snow or it's rush hour).

But London is a singularly great place for tube tunnels and other mass transit:

- birthplace of the industrial revolution

- had a ton of infrastructure development during the 1800s when safety was no concern and development could be done cheap and fast

- high density

- lots of engineers and other skilled people to make it work

- tons, tons of money and support from a big government in a high-tax society

- focal point of a global empire for a long time, which fed all the above even more

- a nice layer of softer rock underneath the city perfect for tunnelling

We should build mass transit in places like this where it makes sense. But for 99% of the rest of Earth's populated surface, it won't.



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