Submission – Official Map: Long Island Rail Road Screen Maps at Grand Central Madison

comments 2
Filed Under:
Official Maps, Photography

Submitted by Griffin, who says:

I work upstairs in the old Grand Central and was every excited to check out the new station this morning. Spotted this new map on the wall down there, thought you might find it interesting.

Transit Maps says:

Oh, I do like this. Graphically strong with bright, poppy colours and making good use of the unusual display format – eight vertical screens next to each other. The map looks to have been specifically designed for this format, as none of the labels cross over the breaks between panels – nicely done! Here’s hoping it doesn’t get blanked out by advertisements too much!

It’s hard to see in this photo, but it looks like there’s a lovely wavy texture to the water background, which is a nice design touch. Addition of ferry routes and points of interest on Long Island are also welcome. There are a few quibbles like the multiple angles for labels and the placement of some stations directly on corner points (the hard 90-degree turn that the Far Rockaway Branch takes from Valley Stream station looks particularly odd), but these are minor concerns. The typography and overall design is nicely evocative of Vignelli’s diagrams without being completely derivative. Perhaps more art installation than useful map – I can imagine it would be hard to take the whole map in at once if you were standing in front of it – this is still some very strong design work.

Update: Better images of each panel in this Reddit post.

2 Comments

  1. mjw_nyc says

    Regarding Far Rockaway turn, did you mean it’s stylistically odd? Because in real life that’s more or less what it does. Leaving Valley Stream, almost immediately there’s the split right, followed a couple train lengths later on the Babylon by the 45 degree left-hand fork for West Hempstead. I think for people who live here it acts as a good visual cue, both reminding you are heading back towards The City, sort of. As well as suggesting the shape of Jamaica Bay.

    • I appreciate that – for me it’s the way that 90-degree turn happens right underneath Valley Stream station – it’s too abrupt. I’d prefer a curve just past the station to lead the eye more gradually into the transition.

Leave a Comment