The table presents data on underground railway systems in six major cities: London, Paris, Tokyo, Washington DC, Kyoto, and Los Angeles. It provides information on the year each system opened, the length of the routes in kilometres, and the annual passenger numbers in millions.
Overall, older systems tend to have longer routes and higher passenger numbers, while newer systems are smaller and serve fewer passengers. Tokyo stands out as an exception, having a relatively shorter route than London but the highest annual ridership.
London has the oldest underground system, opening in 1863, and the longest route at 394 km, carrying 775 million passengers each year. Paris, inaugurated in 1900, covers 199 km and serves 1,191 million passengers annually, surpassing London despite having a shorter network. Tokyo, which began operations in 1927, has 155 km of routes but accommodates the largest number of passengers, reaching 1,928 million per year.
In contrast, the newer systems have much smaller networks and lower usage. Washington DC’s underground, opened in 1976, extends 126 km and serves 144 million passengers annually. Kyoto, opened in 1981, has the shortest network at 11 km, transporting 45 million passengers per year, while Los Angeles, the newest system inaugurated in 2001, covers 28 km and carries 50 million passengers annually.
In summary, although older cities generally have longer networks, passenger volume depends more on city demand than route length, with Tokyo demonstrating extremely high usage relative to its network size.