Transportation

South America's First Subway Turns 101

Buenos Aires' oldest subways cars didn't quite make it to 100 years in service. State and city officials hope to give new life to the retired La Brugeoise cars soon.
A child looks through the window of a wooden carriage car on the historic subway system, Line A, in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Wednesday, Jan. 2, 2013. AP/Natacha Pisarenko

South America's first subway system turns 101 years old today.

The Buenos Aires subway system, known as Subte, debuted December 1, 1913. Originally spanning 2.1 miles, the first rail cars took Porteños between Plaza de Mayo and Plaza Miserere along a single line. Today, Subte has 83 stations along six different lines and an annual ridership of 310 million.