Submitted by Jasper, who says:

This is a map I designed of the The New York City Elevated System, a proposed automated-rapid-transit system for the five boroughs, to be owned and operated by the City of New York. The 88-mile, 72 station network would run above the city’s major streets and freeways, connecting with 26 subway routes, LIRR and Metro-North commuter railroads, PATH train, a revised LaGuardia AirTrain, and over 120 city buses. The system would have three routes, two of which provide continuous loop services through four of the city’s boroughs, while one provides a radial service stretching from the West Bronx to the North Shore of Staten Island. Its routes focus on growing access to rail service outside of Manhattan, specifically serving neighborhoods in some of the city’s largest transit deserts. The El would operate services that resemble rapid transit in frequency, but with speeds and station spacing akin to suburban rail, filling the current gap in New York’s transit modes.

The map took me a few years working in my spare time. Was my first big illustrator project and it’s intended to be both familiar and striking. The design takes inspiration from several subway maps, namely the most recent 1979 iteration, which has been digitally simplified to an ugly and unnecessarily boring degree, in my opinion.

Transit Maps says:

Oh, I like this! It seems to be envisioning a New York City that never tore down the Third Avenue El, but instead modernised and expanded it to serve all five boroughs. In this alternative vision, many of the old stops in Manhattan have been closed to turn the El into an express service – and if you look closely, only the cyan Roosevelt Line makes all stops in Manhattan, meaning the two loop lines would rocket along on the main trunk line!

Stylewise, the map definitely draws from the rich heritage of New York transit maps: the original 1979 Hertz/Tauranac map is definitely the biggest influence, but the legend box is subtly reminiscent of 1940s Hagstrom subway maps. with less stations to label than a normal subway map – which is wisely relegated to thin route lines with unlabelled dots – the typography can be made larger and more stylish. The comprehensive services box at each El station are clear and well thought out, showing which subway services can be accessed at each point.

Our final word: Successfully draws on previous New York maps to create something that looks like it belongs to the city while also being fresh and new. Nice work!