Distances are redrawn so that spatial distance ≈ fastest travel time across any mode
(walk · car · rail · short-haul flight · long-haul flight). The full pairwise time matrix
is made metric via Floyd–Warshall, embedded in 2-D with SMACOF MDS, and the coastline
is warped along with the cities using a thin-plate spline. No reference city is required —
every one of the N(N−1)/2 pairs contributes equally to the layout.