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Metro Lisboa Lisbon Terreiro do Paco platforms

A metro system

A subway station is most likely to be abandoned by the populace due to their general lack of importance in a post-apocalyptic situation. They provide quick, relatively unhindered movement through the surrounding area. The entrance and tunnels serve as effective chokepoints.

The main problems of using a subway as a base are fairly obvious. Without any independent electricity supply, the tunnels will be dark, leading to getting lost and/or shrouding the movements of the undead within. Subways lack amenities such as food and water production and accomodation.

Another problem would be flooding. In major cities, deeper sections of the subway network may be rendered impassible due to severe flooding or possible collapse of flooded sections. This could pose problems in both navigation and any attempted residency of stations, abandoned trains and tunnels on deeper levels.

Overall subway stations may be devoid of the dead due to government efforts to stem the rate of infection leading to their closure, their seeming lack of worth to most people in a post-apocalyptic world and because of fear and panic within the civilian populace leading to abandonment of mass-transit or a reduced number of commuters. But looking at them with a wider angle they do seem to have more push than pull factors. While they may not be the most reasonable of safe-houses they can be seen as useful for quick and reasonably safe movement under metropolitan areas.

Pros And Cons[]

Positives[]

  • They can be easy to secure.
  • Allows safer movement throughout cities.

Negatives[]

  • Flooding could cause structural damage to deeper sections of the tunnel system.
  • Generators can't be used on platform levels due to Carbon Monoxide build up and the build up of other fumes.
  • Smaller stations will be cramped and uncomfortable.
  • Sources of food in stores located in the stations will quickly run out if a large group is holding out within the station.
  • It is impossible to grow food without a bucket of soil, water from the fire system some lights and the seeds.
  • Stations are made to be accessible, usually in busy places, and depending on time of initial outbreak they could have been extremely busy, with hundreds of people in a confined space causing rapid rates of infection. This means they have the potential to have hundreds of zombies wandering around in the dark.

Note[]

  • Some subway systems were built as a shelters in event of nuclear war.
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