London’s underground network (the tube) uses around 1.6TWh a year to function.
The strong winds felt on platforms and around stations is caused by the piston effect. It’s generated by the trains pushing air forward through the tunnels, and the drawing of air down into the tunnels through draught-relief shafts.
Here’s what I’m thinking – There’s a crap ton of fans noticeable in stations, is it possible to adapt them to act like micro wind turbines? It could harness the wind to power stations as it’s generated and revert to traditional means when fan-created power loses momentum – like a hybrid car. This way we wouldn’t need to worry about batteries just yet.
Even 1% of energy derived from this method would be a staggering improvement.