World's Largest Subway System Completed

The subway system was completed and opened for business on October 27, 1904. The price to ride was a nickel and 150,000 stood in line to take a ride on the first subway train. New Yorkers applauded IRT's innovations, especially its use of electric power which added nothing to the city's air pollution. With a four-track design that could run in each direction at both local and express speeds, IRT had built the fastest public transportation system in the world. Its slogan: "City Hall to Harlem in 15 minutes!"
Neighborhoods sprung up around the planned subway stations and the population grew. In 1900 few people lived in Brooklyn, but by 1914 it was home to one million people. On Monday, December 23, 1946, 8,872,244 people rode the New York subway system, a record that still stands today.
Thanks to IRT, New York City flourished and developed into the city it is today because the subways enabled people to live in one area of the large city and work in another, with quick and efficient travel in between.
Since the subway was built, over 100 stations have been renovated, with many more planned. More than 1,000 new cars have been put into use, at a price of $2.4 billion - more than it cost to build the entire subway system itself.