And you're worried about terrorism on your local subway?

The Subte in Buenos Aires is in a little bit of disrepair. The Subte is BsAs' very large subway system. The point of sharing this is not to rip on BsAs but to point out that there are dangers other than bombs or nerve gas.

The link is to a blog created by a group of subway buffs. In all fairness I have no idea whether the scope of the problems is normal for a system of the size and scale of that in Buenos Aires. The statistics are vague and a little sensationalized - it's what reminded me of Cronica (see the next entry). I've personally ridden it a few times unharmed and to walk through its underground passages on the way to and from the train is just like being in Paris. But its interesting reading that probably isn't going to get translated into English. It's not an exhaustive translation of the whole posting, just some of the bullet points.

For those that don't read Spanish:
* 303 cars with too many kilometers on them
* Many of the wheels have flat spots. The cars have 6 places where they can brake and a 7th emergency brake. The airbrake system malfunctions and causes friction. Also, the brake shoes are not properly fit or in some cases replaced. When they are replaced, its with a material that does not meet the factory specification.
* The rails are not properly aligned on line D between Pueyrredón and Catedral - the busiest route on the whole network
* Some cars don't have safety glass. The glass is like regular window glass and it breaks easily.
* Numerous stations don't have emergency lights. Those that exist are either not in working order or are not correctly placed.
* All of the subway lines have high voltage cables that water has leaked into.
* Some of the platforms are damaged due to problems with the wheels and suspensions of the cars.
* Some of the car frames and axles are bent. Some have rust in the airbrake system.

The lack of safety glass is a little scary - but I'd still like to know some percentages I guess...