Should really be titled "What is under New York's streets?" If you've always wondered, here's your answer in words and art.

I'm amazed it doesn't collapse on itself. 

Wouldn't it be great if we could start fresh with it, knowing what needs to be installed now and allow fro future growth, build strong support systems underneath but also a tunnel system to manage all the various factors of metro life support so that it won't interfere with the roads? like a sewer system but secure and only opened when authorized by the agency who controls the access doors. They could be on the side of the streets integrated into skyscrapers and the like.

It could be built with stairs and a utility elevator every 2 blocks give or take. That would mean you are never more than 1 block from the point of interest under the street in question.

That is an example of what we need to do for advanced city planning on Earth Beta, or Earth 2.

I think you just described the appeal of games like SimCity.

We can learn so much from the first time we try to build things.