How a Forced Experiment Led to a Faster Commute

When news of the labor strike broke, commuters were furious. London’s Underground, affectionately known as the “tube”, is the subway system responsible for transporting millions to their destination each day. So when some routes were shut down during the 2014 strike, commuters were forced to find alternative ways to get to work.

Since Underground passengers are required to swipe their access cards when both entering and leaving the system, researchers were able to analyze the data to determine w...