Chicago’s street grid is so incredibly regular that this map seems to be a rectilinear diagram. It’s only after observing some odd little twists and turns in the route lines that you realise that this is actually a fairly geographically accurate map – so much so that the downtown Loop is represented in an detail inset because it would otherwise appear too small to decipher. Even the station names pretty much conform to the grid – in effect, labelling the major streets of the city. This does call attention to a strange feature of the system: repetition of station names on different lines. I count four separate “Pulaski” stations! It’s obviously not a problem, as people would identify them by their respective line colours, but it’s not something I’ve seen very often in other transit systems.

In the end, I feel this hybrid approach ultimately works against the map – it looks so much like a diagram that the jinks in the route lines almost look like mistakes. They’re not, of course, but the effect is a bit unsettling.

Have we been there? Yes, but I don’t have the fondest memories of the “L”, as the Blue Line was under heavy construction, with extremely limited speeds and then bus service to downtown. Almost didn’t make my flight out of Chicago because of it.

What we like: Station labels are (almost; see below) limited to two directions only, allowing for easier reading. The Loop inset allows a lot of downtown detail without compromising the integrity of the rest of the map. The thinning of the lines as they enter the area that the inset represents is quite effective.

What we don’t like: There are only two station names set at a 45-degree angle (Ashland and Clinton on the Green/Pink lines) and they look really out of place, especially as there’s room to run them horizontally. Colour scheme for the background is uninspiring. The dashed line for rush service on the Blue Purple line looks very wonky in places. Some very minor twists in the route lines look overly fussy and unnecessary: the western end of the Pink line, for example. Black outline on the Yellow Line looks heavy-handed and out of place.

Our rating: A solid map that conveys information well enough. It just lacks that certain spark to lift it above the merely informational. Three stars.

Source: Official CTA website