Submitted by Jaime, who says:

I would like to share with you the new Metrovalencia’s network map, whose design has been updated with the opening of the new Line 10 this year. The main reason why the transit operator decided to redesign it from scratch instead of just adding the new line layout is because they wanted to start avoiding using diagonal-axis labels on it, as they think horizontal labels are more accessible for people with intellectual disability.

But there are more differences:

• Tram services now are represented again with solid lines, as it was in the previous map before the 2015’s redesign, ending with the differentiation from the “metro” ones. This could be because the new Line 10 is such a mix, operated with tramway units but with underground stations in the city center. But maybe this rule could have been maintained using the two-toned line for the street-runing sections and the solid line style for traffic segregated sections, for example.
• They’ve included some spatial references, such as the curves of the subway tunnel between Àngel Guimerà and Xàtiva or Ayora and Marítim, or the Pont de Fusta loop, which before they were in a straight line.
• As almost all the city center stations are shared by different lines, now all of them are officially transfer stations. The map also points when in the same station different lines stop in different platforms (e.g. Alameda). The old transfer icon now represents intermodal stations where the users can change from subway to tramway lines or vice versa (except in Bailén/Alacant, maybe because they consider they’re different stations?).
• It’s drawn the future underground moving walkway which will be built to connect Xàtiva and Alacant stations as the project to extend the line some meters more with a new station for Line 10 built in Xàtiva was cancelled. Now, this connection just can be done walking on the street as the woman icon pretends to explain.
• In this new map version, it’s represented the stations where some routes can end when they run as partial routes, with the line icon near its label.
• The transit operator decided to reduce the number of fare zones from 4 to just 2 (plus the Airport fare zone), so now there are some stations that belong to both zones represented by this background color overlap.

A similar design has been created also for the TRAM of Alicante, which is run by the same transit operator, so now both cities shares the same map style (but with different typeface: Titillium for Metrovalencia and Rotis for TRAM).

I would appreciate if you could check this version and tell us your opinion about if all these changes and new additions have been really an improvement or just unnecessary with the previous map design [from 2015; review here – Cam] as a reference.

Transit Maps says:

There’s some things I really like about this diagram and there are others I’m not so fond of… so let’s start with the good!

Metrovalencia is a bit of an odd system in that it freely combines street-running trams, a full metro including subways, and commuter rail that runs far out into the surrounding countryside, all under one umbrella. So I really don’t mind that there’s no attempt made at mode differentiation here – these lines are all part of Metrovalencia, and are all treated equally. What I really do like is that the central Zone A is presented with a good degree of spatial accuracy, and the map then gets progressively more diagrammatic the further out it gets. This condenses those far-flung lines (especially Line 1 to the south) rather wonderfully. Presumably, the way that stops are grouped along those lines reflects the different built-up urban areas along each route – though it does perhaps just end up looking a bit haphazard. I’d be interested in seeing an alternative where the stops are always evenly spaced: it might just look a little more harmonious.

The overlapping zones are drawn about as neatly as they can be, though I do think they could be a bit lighter in tone. As it stands, it seems like some of the route colours have had to be strengthened quite a lot to compete with the background – Line 1 is more of a dull gold than its previous goldenrod yellow, for example. It’s also unfortunate that the dark gold outline for Zone A passes right through the middle of the map’s legend!

The new interchange markers are definitely an improvement over the previous version, clearly indicating when passenger movement between platforms or modes is required. The weakest interchange design is at Empalme, where Line 1 takes a 90-degree turn underneath the marker, which is generally regarded as bad design practice.

Finally, it’s interesting to note that this diagram takes the approach of using a crossed-out wheelchair icon to indicate the one and only non-accessible station at Valencia Sud, which is fair enough.

Our final word: A definite improvement in my eyes, though still not truly outstanding. By my reckoning, this is at least the third totally different design for the Metrovalencia diagram since 2009 (when I visited the city and rode the network), which is fairly rapid turnover and doesn’t really speak to a consistent design language for the network.

Source: Metrovalencia website