Month: December 2015

Submission – Official Map: Revised Manchester Metrolink Map, December 2015

December 28, 2015
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Submitted by mactire, who says: I’d be interested to know your opinion of the updated Manchester tram map, a different version of which was featured earlier this year (August 2015, 4 stars)? Personally, although I can see the need to accommodate increasing complexity in the system, I don’t think the route indicators are easy to follow, and the placement of symbols and labels seems just a bit messier in fitting around them. Transit Maps says: […]

Historical Map: 1977 MBTA Guidelines and Standards Manual – Graphics

December 23, 2015
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A page from the 1977 MBTA Standards Manual showing the specifications for a map panel as installed at the entrance level of a station, using Kendall inbound as an example. Signage much like this can still be seen across most of the rapid transit network. Interestingly, there’s no Kickstarter campaign to reissue this particular standards manual, perhaps because it wasn’t created by a famed Italian modernist designer and is typeset in the most basic manner […]

Submission – Official Map: Detroit M-1 Rail “Sponsors Map”

December 22, 2015
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Submitted by Mike, who has a lot of good things to say, much of which I agree with. Hopefully, the official map once the line is up and running will tone down the sponsorship a lot (the way the Quicken Loans logo covers up the label for the Greyhound Bus Station is particularly awful) and focus more on how the line creates vital transportation connections for the people of Detroit. Here’s Mike’s full submission text: […]

Question: How Many Subways Have You Used?

December 22, 2015
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A question from Richard Archambault via Twitter: how many metros/subways have you personally visited? Favourite? Answer: Oooo, good question! Using the full list of rail rapid transit systems in Mark Ovenden’s Transit Maps of the World gives this list (in approximate order of first use): Sydney (suburban rail, monorail, light rail) London (Underground) Paris (Métro) Rome (Metro) Melbourne (tram) Ghent (tram) Milan (commuter/regional rail to Como, not tram or Metro) Naples (Circumvesuviano line only, not Metro) […]

Unofficial Map – Roman Metro and Suburban Rail Map by Dmitry Goloub

December 18, 2015
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I’ve featured Russian information and type designer Dmitry Goloub’s superb re-imagining of the Milan Metro map previously (October 2013, 5 stars), and now he’s back with his rendition of rail transit in Rome.  This is a commissioned map for the Welcome to Rome tourist magazine, and it’s certainly a step up from many unofficial maps featured in similar publications throughout the world (often, publishers don’t want to pay the licensing fees to use an official […]

Submission – 1952 Berlin S-Bahn Map Recreation by Jesse Jae Hoon Eisenberg

December 17, 2015
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Submitted by Jesse, who says: Inspired by your re-make of the Paris Metro maps, I went and re-made from scratch this map of Berlin from 1952. I used DIN Pro, which seemed like the closest match. I took a few liberties with some of the colors and symbols here and then, but for the most part I’ve tried to stick to the original as closely as possible. Would love to hear what you think! Transit […]

Submission – Historical Map: South Shore Line Railfan Tour Brochure, 1939

December 16, 2015
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Submitted by marmarinou – who runs a cool Tumblr dedicated to Chicago-area railroads and trains. A very basic map of the South Shore Line between Chicago, IL and South Bend, IN appended to the back cover of a railfan tour brochure from 1939. The day-long tour of the line was organised by the Central Electric Railfans Association, which is still extant today. Check out the original source of the image (keep scrolling down) for the inside spread […]

Video: A Tube Map Made of Chocolates!

December 15, 2015
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Ah, the Quality Street box of chocolates and toffees – a perennial Christmas gift from grandparents throughout the UK, Australia and elsewhere. Their brightly coloured wrappers lend themselves well to this little project: a recreation of the London Tube map made from individual chocolates laid end to end.  Yes, it’s all a silly bit of festive fun, but there is actually some insight into the current state of the map when they’re laying out the […]

Submission – Virginia Railway Express Commuter Rail Map, 2015

December 14, 2015
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Submitted by Edward Russell, whose photo of this map in situ can be seen here. Edward says: Virginia Railway Express (VRE) updated their map with the addition of the Spotsylvania station on the Fredericksburg (red) line in November. It’s much cleaner than their former map, which included the numerous meanders on the lines and lacked clean 90-degree or 45-degree angles. The new map is just straight lines with a clean 45-degree split where the Manassas […]

Video: “Stations – A Quick Scan Through NYC” by Snowday

December 9, 2015
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Just a couple of glimpses of the subway map at the beginning, but I still love this short video featuring the stations of the New York Subway and the people who pass through it every day. Having just returned from a trip to the Big Apple, I wish I had the ability to capture the lifeblood of the city as well as this. Source: Snowday/Vimeo