In the USA, new transit takes time. Whether it’s Environmental Impact Statements that take seven years to write, or tunnel boring machines that take longer than expected to do their work, or lawsuits from people angry that light rail might take away one of their beloved exit ramps, or mayors who want to rip up new streetcar tracks after they’ve been installed… the list goes on.

China, however, is a completely different matter… as this great timeline GIF from Peter Dovak illustrates. Using his lovely “Mini Metro” framework, he’s created a year-by-year breakdown of the growth of mass transit in China… and the end result is certainly breathtaking. Watch out especially from 2010 onwards, when the number of systems (and lines within individual systems) just explodes.

Source: Peter’s website (link no longer active)