Chapter : 3. Work, Life & Leisure - Cities in Count. World
Transport in the City
(e) Transport in the City :
(i) The London underground railway partially solved the housing crisis by carrying large masses of people to and from the city. The very first section of the Underground railway in the world opened on 10 January 1863 between Paddington and Farrington Street in London. On that day 10,000 passengers were carried, with trains running every ten minutes. By 1880 the expanded train service was carrying 40 million passengers a year.
(ii) At first people were afraid to travel underground. Many felt that the 'iron monsters' added to the mess and unhealthiness of the city. It led to the massive destruction in the process of construction. To make approximately two miles of railway, 900 houses had to be destroyed. It led to a massive displacement of the London poor, especially between the two World Wars.
(iii) Yet the Underground eventually became a huge success. As a result, the population in the city became more dispersed. Better planned suburbs and good railway network enabled large number to live outside central London and travel to work. The new conveniences wore down social distinctions and also created new ones.
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