Why develop turbo-electric warship propulsion?

Which propulsion system would you have developed further between World War I and World War II?

Turbo-electric drive is the preferred counterfactual choice for its survivability and maintenance advantages, despite the cost and efficiency advantages of geared turbines.

The preference for further turbo-electric development puts survivability and maintenance ahead of the geared turbine's efficiency advantage with the technology then available. Redundant electrical circuits could let a surviving generating unit power several propeller motors, while shorter shafts would reduce the length vulnerable to disruption and simplify replacement. Separating turbines from propeller shafts would also reduce vibration, wear and thrust loads transmitted into the turbines. One generating unit could undergo maintenance while the remaining units sustained cruising speed. Cross-connected boiler and turbine rooms would extend that flexibility, allowing surviving machinery to support different parts of the propulsion system. These advantages came with greater cost and a need for more power to obtain the same speed. Geared turbines would still develop for destroyers and other applications where compact power and speed were particularly important.