Best Metros in the World — Hong Kong, Bangalore, Tashkent…

Rudybahias in Tehuacan finds the New York subway “dirty, old and not punctual,” while Onno Frowein in Yerevan doesn’t mind it being “fast, noisy and a reflection of the life in the city.” Its 24-hour schedule is particularly appealing to Tomrsemail in Kabul, who “would choose a twenty-four hour deafening roller coaster over a part-time beauty.”

When Rendezvous asked readers about their favorite metro, we were flooded with hundreds of impassioned responses. Public transport, and especially its failings, can spark quite a debate.

While no clear winner emerged, the main drivers (sorry) were safety, speed and cleanliness. Oh, and it needs to be inexpensive, too. Sorry, London, though one Londoner helpfully pointed out you had to be daft to pay the full fare.

The Rendezvous community loves New York’s speed and its 24/7/365 lifestyle but hates its grime and eardrum-piercing screech. We love London’s style and flare but loath its inefficacy and price. We love Moscow, Vienna and Kiev’s beauty and Paris and Budapest’s charm, and the Asian giants’ modernity: Hong Kong, Beijing, Guangzhou, Seoul, Bangkok and Bangalore. And Oslo and Tashkent received special poetic mentions. And we have little good to say about San Francisco or Washington’s undergrounds.

Our thoughts:

Americanadmirer in New Delhi praised that city’s metro for its women-only cars and Acercampestre in Mexico City, describing herself as “a senior woman traveling alone,” felt “perfectly safe” in Mexico City’s women and children cars during rush hours.

Bob H. in China admired the beautiful stations in Kiev, Ukraine, but regretted having lost a “big wad of cash” to thieves. Seamus in Ireland was even unluckier: he was robbed there twice: “first by thieves and later by the charming Ukrainian Police.”

When it comes to cleanliness, Hong Kong, Shenzhen, Vienna, Seoul and Beijing are winners, and you could eat off the seats of the Namma in Bangalore, suggests gwolfjr in Washington, D.C. The absence of dirt, however, does not guarantee a stress-free journey: John in Florence spent “the most terrifying moments” of his life in the “squeeze and unbelievable density of the Beijing system.”

New York City’s subway, the Tube in London and the Paris Metro are the most disputed among Rendezvous readers. For many, these networks just don’t live up to their iconic status.

London is mostly criticized for its expensive fares, but Gus â€" in London â€" reminded us that with reduced fares and discounts, “only the ignorant! pay the ! full price.”

As for Paris, opinions differed drastically. For Joseph in Chicago, it’s “full of expectations and marvels” but Richard, a Londoner, finds Paris Metro “threateningly scruffy.” Kinley in Paris is one of the readers to point out that it can be “quite often horrible for people with reduced mobility.”

The award for most picturesque stations goes to Moscow. Winterlover in Toronto “spent a whole day just riding the subway and getting off at various stops just to look at the art ad sculpture.”

Other metros are noted for their artwork, like Athens Metro (AKA admires the “marble tile birds by Pheidakis at the Music Hall station and the repetetive Gaitis chairs at the Larissis station”) or Tashkent, Uzbekistan (“Every station is a individualized work of art,” according to John in Almaty, Kazakhstan).

Tko Eirheim, a subway driver on the Oslo subway prefers his own workplace when it comes to scenic and unusual views on a subway. While admittedly slightly biased, he has a point: “this subway system will give the traveler a myriad of nature experiences within a short traveling distance, eve! rything f! rom snow caped mountains to tranquil fjord scenes.”

Budapest has the fastest escalators (according to David K in Bozeman, Montana), while preserving “a relaxed old-world quality,” says Susan Roether in San Francisco.

But affordability, speed, and cleanliness are not everything. When you are traveling with a lot of fellow commuters in confined spaces, etiquette is part of the experience. Mcgrathkate in Vienna finds that city’s metro “fast, quiet, clean, reliable” but warns that “you certainly don’t make eye contact or even help.” E.T in Taipei called painted a harmonious tableau of his city’s metro: “Younger people won’t occupy the priority seats. People will give up their seats when they see elderly, kids, disabled people or pregnant women. It is a nicely run society.”

Mexico City it turned out was a favorite among readers, mostly for its affordability. “At 25 cents USD a trip it must be the best bargain of all the worlds subway systems,” writes Acercampestre.

But nothing is as cost-effective as a free ride. Gimme a break in Washington, D.C. mentioned the scenic Vancouver Skytrain, which “you can easily ride for free since the designers apparently never thought to install turnstiles.”