Just received the latest TfL magazine (renamed from "Tube" to "London
Loop", which contains the following item on page 35:

ONE-WAY TREAT

London Loop has found that, in real terms, the Tube will soon rank among
the cheapest underground systems in Europe.

We compared cities by taking into account the price of a new Oyster
single far and the potential number of stations on any one journey.
Berlin and London proved the cheapest:

LONDON
Stations: 275
Single Oyster fare (Zones 1-6): £3.50
Price per 10 stations: 13p

BERLIN
Stations: 170
Single fa £1.80
Price per 10 stations: 11p

COPENHAGEN
Stations: 93
Single fa £1.55
Price per 10 stations: 91p

HELSINKI
Stations: 16
Single fa £1.35
Price per 10 stations: 84p

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Can anyone please tell me how counting the total number of stations one
could theoretically go to on one's journey can in any way be related to
the journey's cheapness?

Likewise, how can a £1.35 fare be called "more expensive" simply because
there aren't as many stations you could go to than a £3.50 fare with a
wider choice of destinations?

Is this completely mad, or am I missing something obvious?

If someone could define the extra-bizarre phrase "in real terms" in this
context, I'd be delighted!

If the purpose of a tube journey was too see how many stations you could
pass through on one ticket, I'd vaguely understand the rationale, but I
don't see how anyone in their right mind could use that as the basis for
calculating value.