The Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA) freely admits it has never faced anything like the severe damage from Hurricane Sandy, and has absolutely no idea when the system will be up and running.

　　“We'll know it after everything is done，” says MTA spokesman Charles Seaton. But the good news is — well, never mind.

　　There isn't any. Really, it's that bad, and if there's no telling when things

　　will be repaired, there're even fewer ways of knowing what the eventual price tag will be.

　　Yes, there are lessons to be learned from the current emergency for both New York itself and urban planners everywhere; the question is whether they'll be heeded.

　　New York's woes (难题) are partly a function. New York's subway system is 108 years old. Its tunnels and stations are located close to or under rivers and harbors, and water seepage (渗水) is unavoidable. “We have three pump trains, 300 pump rooms and dozens of portable pumps around the system，” says Seaton. “Even on a day when there's no rain, we pump out 13 million gallons of water.”

　　Hurricane Sandy, of course, put a lot more stress on the system than an ordinary rainless day. Flood water in lower Manhattan rose to 4.2 m, beating the record of 3 m set by Hurricane Donna in 1960.

　　Much of Manhattan below 40th St. is without electricity. No subway system will ever be truly immune to weather events. This is especially so in great cities like New York, whose very greatness in part depends on their nearness to rivers, harbors and other bodies of water.

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