Sent my way by quite a few people, here’s yet another gorgeous transportation map from Art Lebedev Studios. It bears a lot of their usual trademarks –interesting and unusual station ticks, gradients between line colours at interchange stations, superb point-of-interest icons – but it also brings a playfulness that I haven’t really seen before in their work. The route lines have a very pleasant organic flow to them, and there are some very nice “flavour” icons dotted around the map as well.

The directional arrows for one way travel (seen in the second image above) are some of the nicest I’ve ever seen, subtly incorporated into the lines themselves but still very clear in their meaning. The more street-accurate “enlargements” at the main bus station and tram/airport bus interchanges are also extremely well implemented, and very useful for those less familiar with the city.

If I had one minor complaint, it’s that the point-of-interest icons are drawn with differing perspective: some are flat (the various markets and the Potemkin Stairs), others are more top than front, and others are more front than top. They’re all very well executed, but I personally find it just a little visually jarring to switch between viewpoints.

As always with a Lebedev Studios map, it’s not just about the finished piece, but the process – go and check out their page where they describe all the design options that were discussed, tested, discarded and implemented. The first solution is not always the best!

Our rating: Fantastic, organic, friendly mapping for transit. Four-and-a-half stars!

Source: Lebedev Studios