Steam pipes are pretty common and can be quite economical. Besides New York, you'll find them in Seattle, San Francisco, and a number of other large cities in

Steam pipes are pretty common and can be quite economical. Besides New York, you'll find them in Seattle, San Francisco, and a number of other large cities in the US, as well as all over Europe. On a small scale, a number of institutions run them as well - IIT in Chicago, for example, has a central steam plant.