Back in April, we hit you up with some facts that even native New Yorkers might not know about the New York City subway.
But because the subway is wild, complex, and extreme, and accomplishes the gargantuan feat of transporting more than 4.3 million people per day, we didn't cover 'em all.
We couldn't have covered every fact about the subway, because the subway is insane. Some subway cars are underwater reefs, while others travel incomprehensible amounts of miles.
So we compiled 9 more crazy, head-spinning, mind-blowing facts about the NYC subway. We sincerely hope you're blown away.
1. Subway trains have been repurposed as artificial ocean reefs
Via Viral Forest
In 2008, 44 subway cars were dumped into the Atlantic ocean to become homes to millions of fish.
The trains were dropped into the ocean 21 miles off the Maryland coast to create an artificial reef. Maryland is planning to implement more artificial subway reefs.
There are also artificial reefs under ocean waters in Delaware and New Jersey which were dumped when the MTA released 1,200 cars in 2001.
[anad]
Delaware's reef program coordinator Jeff Tinsman said that a 600-car reef in Delaware multiplied the local fish population by 400.
So, contrary to popular belief, New York City isn't completely horrible for the natural world.
[via Reuters]
2. Most of the subway's 468 stations were built by 1940
The subway originated in October of 1904 with 28 stations, and has since grown to 468 stations.
The private railway companies that used to operate the subway are still visible in the echoes the subway station's designs.
The more ornate Interborough Rapid Transit Company (IRT) stations and Brooklyn-Manhattan Transit Corporation (BMT) stations were largely open by 1928, while the never Independent Rapid Transit Railroad (IND) stations were mostly opened between 1932 and 1948.
IND's stations were designed with a more streamlined, Machine-Age design.
[via MTA]
3. 'MTA Arts for Transit' has installed artwork in dozens of stations since 1985
ruddy_was_here If you ever take the 1 train uptown to 191 street, make sure to walk thru this #streetart tunnel that leads to Broadway. Many different artists collaborated to make this Urban space POP 🌟 #RuddyWasHere #nyc #artsfortransit #art #subway #urban #washingtonheights #photography #photooftheday #amazing #instacool #graffiti #uptowngirl #ConciergeNYC #concretejungle #seethis
You've probably noticed that many of NYC's subway stations are adorned with elaborate murals, statues, and stained glass.
These were all commissioned as part of MTA's Arts for Transit program, which includes more than 300 permanent works of art.
And, the Arts for Transit program isn't limited to visual art.
Music Under New York presents quality music to the commuting public, with more than 350 soloists and groups performing 7,500 annual performances at 30 locations throughout the subway system.
And Poetry in Motion has brought more than 200 poems to the eyes of subway riders since it began in 1992.
[via MTA]
4. Subway clerks used to sprinkle chili powder into token slots to prevent thefts
almosice210 Tatted Turnstile #NoFilter #NYC #NewYork #MTA #Subway #Graffiti #Tag #StreetArt #Metrocard #SubwayCar #SubwayTokens #SubwayPlatform #WaitingOnATrain
When the subway accepted tokens as payment, there used to be a very popular form of theft called "token sucking." Which is exactly what it sounds like.
Thieves used to jam token slots with matchbooks or gum wrappers and wait for a paying rider to try and shove their token in the hole. The paying customer would then lose their coin and walk away in frustration.
[anad2]
Then, the token sucker suctioned the token from the slot and inhaled to acquire the $1.50 token.
So clerks were known to sprinkle chili powder into the slots jammed most often, and some officers even sprayed a small around of mace around the regular slots.
People with bright red lips were then arrested.
[via The New York Times]
5. In 2014 subway trains travelled a combined 361.1 million miles
In 2014 there were 6,383 subway cars in service. These cars made 7,883 combined trips on any given weekday.
And these trips amounted to 361.1 million miles.
Since Earth's equatorial circumference is 24,901.55 miles, in 2014, the NYC subway system travelled enough miles to have taken 14,501 trips around Earth.
,
6. The worst subway accident ever killed 97 people
Via New York Times
And injured more than 200 others.
In 1918, a Brighton Beach train of the Brooklyn Rapid Transit company was made up of five wooden cars of the oldest type in use, and was speeding with a rush hour crowd on board to make up for lost time on its way from Park Row to Coney Island.
[anad]
The train jumped the track on a sharp curve and plunged into the concrete partition between the north and south bound tracks.
Nearly everyone in the first car was killed, and most of those in the second car were either killed or badly injured as well.
[via Buzzfeed and The NY Times]
7. Green globes at subway entrances mean it's open all night
shaina_maidel A small slice of midtown on a beautiful day 🚇 #manhattan #nyc #subwayglobes #subway #mta #newyork #newyorkcity #citylife #greenglobes #nyny
The colored lamps nested above subway stations signify their nighttime availability.
In the 1980s, mostly to prevent muggings, transit officials started a color-code system to warn riders away from entrances that were closed at night.
Green lights meant the station is always open, while red meant the station was either part-time or only open during the day.
Because of concerns that the globes "didn't give off enough light," transit officials started installing "half-moon" globes when entrances were rebuilt. These half-moon globes are green or red on top and white on the bottom.
[via The NY Times]
8. The subway transports 1.751 billion people each year
Shockingly, this little factoid only ranks the MTA NYC subway as the 7th busiest public transportation system around the world.
Bejing, Tokyo, Seoul, Shanghai, Moscow, and Guangzhou's subway systems all see more annual riders than NYC's.
[anad2]
Still, there are 7.3 billion people in the entire world, and in 2014 the subway transported 1/7 of the world's population. Which is a lot.
[via World-O-Meters]
9. If the subway tracks were arranged in a straight line, they'd stretch all the way to Chicago
yoichiuzeki R62A flying to Queens Borough Plaza station. #railfan #internationalexpress #IRT #courtsquare #R62a #flushingline #queensboroughplaza #nycsubway #nyc #newyorkcity #7train #MTA #subwaygram
The subways are impossibly curved, twisted, and overlapping, but if they were laid end-to-end in a straight line, they'd amount to more than the distance between NYC and Chicago.
The subway uses 840 miles of track. And there are 789.2 miles between NYC and Chicago. So there. Mind. Blown.
Check out 7 of the Best Works of Art Found Throughout NYC's Subway Stations.
[Feature Image Courtesy: Harvard Pulse]