I wouldn't mind someone using a little antiseptic in many parts of the New York subway.

But underneath the grime there's some really gorgeous stuff down there. The original tile signs from the days of the IRT and BMT (and even some of the IND) are lovely, and have much more personality than any other subway I've taken.

These sorts of things: https://www.pinterest.com/fennecfoxen/old-subway-signs/

And this is still happening. Someone among the powers that be, budget crunches and old equipment be damned, is still prioritizing the creation of beautiful things underground, with no less personality than what came before.

http://nyclovesnyc.blogspot.de/2012/12/new-years-eve-themed-...

I'm not currently living in NYC, but a big perk of my yearly visit is being surprised and delighted with the new things that have popped up.

You could try London [1], the style is very similar.

The London Underground seems reasonably clean to me, but I used to live there. It's closed overnight, but it's also cleaned during the day — you will see a cleaner on many trips you make in the evening, and trains are often (usually?) cleaned quickly when they reach the end of the line.

Stockholm Metro also has some wonderful design, although it's modern.

[1] https://www.google.dk/search?q=leslie+london+underground+til...

The Guardian ran a photo-gallery "article" today on the Stockholm Metro's art:

http://www.theguardian.com/cities/gallery/2015/oct/20/art-st...