The best and worst subways in Europe are named

With the advent of the subway, life in cities has changed beyond recognition. But have you ever wondered which European cities have the best, worst, and busiest ones?

The answers to these questions are provided by a study by luggage storage company Bounce, which has examined all the subway services in the continent's capitals and made some interesting discoveries. Euronews shared the results.

To compare the metro systems, experts took into account a wide range of factors: from the average ranking of stations on Google and the distance covered by the subway to the number of stations, annual passenger traffic, and the percentage of positive and negative online reactions to each service. On their basis, the "metro index" was derived. Unfortunately, the Kyiv Metro was not included in the study because of the war in our country. Moscow and Minsk subways were also excluded from the ranking.

The best European subways

The best subway was the one in Oslo, Norway, with 8.06 points out of 10. The metro system of the Norwegian capital, known as Oslo T-Bane or T-banen i Oslo, boasts 101 stations covering 85 km. It serves all 15 districts of the city and also partially extends to the neighboring municipality of Berum. The Norwegian capital's subway consists of five separate lines and another one is currently under construction.

The second place was taken by the subway of the Bulgarian capital Sofia. Its index is 7.64 out of 10. This is the only subway in the country, and it was opened for passengers only in 1998. The city's subway system covers 52 km of tracks and includes 47 stations, including one that comes close to the airport.

The third place went to the Athens metro, which is praised for its cheap fares, speed, and regularity of train service. All in all, it earned 7.29 points out of 10. The Athens metro provides a direct connection to the airport, allowing travelers to reach the city center by affordable and convenient public transportation. It also connects to the bustling port area of Piraeus, which offers ferry connections to many Greek islands. The Athens metro has 62 stations on 70 km of tracks and carries more than a quarter of a million passengers annually.

The top five also includes the subways of Madrid in Spain and Warsaw in Poland. They received 6.74 and 6.60 points respectively. The top ten also includes the subways of London, Lisbon, Copenhagen, Bucharest, and Prague.

The worst European subways

The Budapest metro in Hungary topped the anti-rating. Its index was only 3.13 out of 10. Although the Hungarian capital's subway system is relatively small, with 48 stations on 39 km of tracks, it carries a very large number of passengers per year - more than 382 million. The condition of the stations often leaves them with very unpleasant impressions.

Brussels took the shameful "silver". The Belgian capital's subway has 59 stations on 40 km of tracks and scored only 3.20 points out of 10. It carries more than 86 million passengers a year, but they don't like the stations very much - they are called dirty and even dangerous.

Rome's subway also received low marks, ranking third in the list of the worst. The Italian capital's subway covers 64 km of tracks distributed across 73 stations, but it received only 3.75 points out of 10. It is called neglected, and passengers complain about the lack of staff, faulty equipment, and other dangers.

Other best of the best

The Paris metro was the busiest. It carries about 1.5 billion passengers a year, or about 4.1 million passengers daily.

The London Underground was recognized as the largest. Its tracks are 402 km long and the number of stations is 272.

Helsinki residents use the metro less than others. The local subway system carries about 600,000 passengers a year, making it the least busy in Europe. It is also the smallest system in the study, with only 30 stations.

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