Historical Map: Tokyo by Richard Saul Wurman, 1984

August 13, 2012
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Thanks to Chris Helenius for bringing this amazing map by Richard Saul Wurman (founder of the TED Conference amongst other things) to my attention. In the course of research for this post, I also discovered that Mr. Wurman was responsible for these beautiful maps of Philadelphia from the book Man-Made Philadelphia: still the most-visited post on Transit Maps by far.

But onto the map itself.

Firstly, this is not a map of the Tokyo subway, as many commentaries that I have come across state. It actually shows two lines of the JR East rapid transit network that very cleverly help to define “Tokyo”: the circular loop Yamanote Line, and the cross-town Chūō-Sōbu Line. The stations along the Yamanote Line all have points of interest listed, while the Imperial Palace complex is shown for reference within the circle.

Secondly, this is beautiful. Abstracted, clarified, simplified information. Five stars.

Source: Edge-Serpentine-Maps Gallery

Historical Map: Sydney Buses CBD Map, 2000

August 13, 2012
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From the back of a Gregory’s Street Directory by the look of things, and very much in their house style. I’m not sure this map is actually helping things that much: Sydney’s labyrinthine network of streets is partially to blame, but the flow of arrows and lines could also be much clearer.

The strange decision to make the background black for the second half of the suburb list (to the right of the map) has the unfortunate side effect of making that half look like a list of night time services.

The other thing to note is that there is a ridiculous number of bus routes serving downtown Sydney.

Source: Nick (kypros1992)/Flickr – link no longer active

Advertisement: Metrovalencia Map for Air Travelers

August 12, 2012
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One of a series of nifty advertisements for the Metro system in Valencia, Spain. This one highlights the system’s connections to the airport (via Lines 3 and 5); I’ve also seen other ones that form the shape of a shopping bag (to showcase the connections to the shopping districts of the city), and a bicycle (to indicate that bicycles can be taken on the system).

These ads all tie into a previous iteration of the Metrovalencia map (this photo is from 2010), which has since made the switch from a diagram to a geographically accurate map (coming up in a future post).

Source: Andrey Belenko/Flickr

Question: Should You Show Lines Under Construction?

August 10, 2012
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Here’s a question from an anonymous follower, who asks:

“Is it good or bad to depict lines under construction on subway maps?”

In my opinion, if the line is actually under construction, then it’s definitely a good thing to show it. It gets users acquainted with the new line before it opens and generates interest. How you show it is up to you – dashed lines are the usual way, although advances in printing mean that transparent or translucent lines are also being used.

If a line is currently being planned, then I don’t think it should be shown on the map – things could change during the planning process and this could confuse people.

However, a good map designer will always work at future-proofing his map, so that new lines can be added in the future without having to reconfigure what already exists. This is one of the reasons why the Washington, DC Metro map has lasted so long – it was planned from the beginning to show the current track layout. It was only once the Dulles extension began construction that the map needed a review, as that extension was not part of the original plan.

From my own experience, when I did my own redesign of the Boston “T” map earlier this year, I purposefully aligned the northern end of the Green Line at Lechmere with the Lowell commuter rail line to take into account the planned Green Line extension, which shares the same right of way as the Lowell line (see picture above). The current official map doesn’t do this and will need to be redrawn when (and if) the Green Line extension opens.

Official Map: Commuter Rail Services of Helsinki, Finland

August 10, 2012
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Here’s a different type of transit map altogether… if one could really call it a “map” at all. Showing commuter rail services out of Finland’s capital, Helsinki, this matrix instead focuses on showing stopping patterns on the four colour-coded commuter lines. Each pattern is clearly denoted with a letter that corresponds to a train – not unlike the local/express services on the New York subway – making finding the correct train to catch easy and quick.

Have we been there? No.

What we like: Unusual but easy to use matrix of services. Horizontal lines indicate each station, so it’s easy to see which train stops there. Colour-coded station names let you know which metropolitan area each station lies in, a clever touch to circumvent some of the geographical shortcomings of the matrix (see below).

What we don’t like: Serious distortion of the length of the lines. The yellow “M” line to Vantaankoski is really only 15km long, while the red “Z” line to Lahti is over 100km long, yet both are shown as almost the same length! This isn’t really a problem for commuters (the target audience), as they would use the system every day and have an understanding of the lie of the land. However, for new users, this could be quite confusing.

The subsidiary line that joins Riihimaki and Lahti stations is jammed in quite tight and small, a little at odds with the graphic simplicity of the rest of the matrix.

Our rating: Something very different that works surprisingly well as an informational tool. Probably needs to be used in conjunction with a geographical map for people unfamiliar with the system. Three stars.

Source: Official VR website

Historical Map: Proposed Extensions of Rapid Transit into Suburban Boston, 1945

August 8, 2012
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Here’s another amazing historical planning map, this time from Boston in 1945. Visually, it looks quite similar to this map, but shows an amazing array of planned extensions to the existing system.

Some of them were built soon after this map was drawn up:the Revere (Blue Line) extension to Wonderland was essentially complete by 1952, although this map shows the line heading even further north. Others took much, much longer: the (Red Line) to Quincy and Braintree wasn’t operational until 1980.

Other lines ended up substantially different to what is shown here: the proposed line east of Harvard takes a circuitous route through East Watertown before ending in Arlington Heights, while others were never built at all, like the extension of the old Everett/Forest Hills elevated line to Dedham.

Interestingly, it looks like there were plans to convert the current Framingham/Worcester commuter rail line into rapid transit: the map shows proposed track emerging from the subway and passing through Trinity Place station (the original name for Back Bay) before heading out towards Auburndale.

Seriously, there are so many interesting things about this map that I can’t list them all here: go take a look at it BIG here.

What we like: Incredible look at ambitious post-war plans for the Boston rapid transit system, especially to compare what got built and what didn’t. The detail is amazing, with each station, bridge, overpass and tunnel being individually and accurately drawn.

What we don’t like: Absolutely nothing. I could look at this for days.

Our rating: 5 stars, duh!

Source: Otto Vondrak/Flickr

Historical Map: Paris Metro Map, 1956

August 7, 2012
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Transit maps today are created on computer, and printed with advanced technology. We think nothing of using many different colours, adding a drop shadow behind type, adding a gradient to the background, transparency effects – all things that state-of-the-art design software makes perhaps a little too easy.

As a contrast to these glitzy new-fangled maps, I present an antidote: a simply stunning, beautiful and ever-so-French map of the Paris Metro from 1956. It’s printed with just two colours, but a clever use of hatching and stippling allows the city limits, forests and the Seine to be shown with absolute clarity and elegant simplicity.

Have we been there? Yes, just not in 1956.

What we like: Elegant and simple. The two colours are beautifully selected and match each other perfectly and serve the purpose of the map well. Typography is gorgeous, with the suburb names – set in an elegant script – particularly standing out. Discreet numbering of the lines allows you to trace them relatively easily, even though they’re all the same colour. Historical interest with the inclusion of the gold Ligne de Sceaux – a line owned by the RATP that ran on a completely different gauge and with different rolling stock to the rest of the Metro. Much of it is now incorporated into RER Line B.

What we don’t like: Incredibly minor nitpick: the ornate compass rose looks a little at odds with the stylish simplicity of the rest of the map.

Our rating: A shining example of simple, elegant, usable mid- 20th century design. Every element of this map serves a purpose. Does more with two colours than many modern maps achieve with unlimited colours. 5 stars!

Prints of a digital reconstruction of this map are available in my online store. 

Source: mikeyashworth/Flickr

Official Map: New Miami Metrorail Station Map, 2012

August 6, 2012
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Here’s a seriously curious photo, brought to my attention by reader Ryan Vansickle. It shows the new signage that has been put in place for the opening of the new Orange Line in Miami that we just featured. Apparently, this sign has been at the Douglas Road station since February, which is impressive pre-planning!

However, the curious thing is that it doesn’t match the actual system map in any way whatsoever. True, this is a strip map and not geographically accurate – but how linked to geography does a two-line system (and that’s being generous, as the Orange Line only adds one new station to the system) really need to be?

If some of the aesthetics and information from this map could be transferred to the main map, it would be vastly improved. Unlike that map, this one clearly denotes stations where people can transfer to Metromover, Tri-Rail and busway services, and the grey background would look much more striking than the dull beige currently in use. On the other hand, this map could benefit from integrating the parking information from the full map.

A unified approach to design is one way a transit agency can present a professional, modern approach to its users. Currently, Miami-Dade Transit appears to be more than a little confused.

Source: DearEdward/Flickr

Official Map: Dallas DART Light Rail System, 2012

August 6, 2012
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Hot on the heels of Miami’s new Orange Line comes another one: this one belonging to the Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) system. This new line will eventually bring light rail to DFW airport, an essential transportation link in any large city, I feel.

Have we been there? No.

What we like: Relatively clean and simple compared to many American transit maps. The street grid is visible, but subsidiary to the main information. The downtown inset, which at first doesn’t seem to offer much more information that the main map, is actually a very nicely done orientation guide, especially with the reference to the streetcar, which is below the scale of the main map.

What we don’t like: Sometimes can’t decide if its a diagram or a map. The wiggle on the eastern end of the Blue Line before Rowlett seems totally unnecessary, and the new Orange Line jumps around all over the place.

Not sure about labelling stations in the same colour as the line they’re on: the orange is a very recessive colour compared to the others, and it means that stations that serve multiple lines get black. I would have preferred all station names in black, as it is arguably the most important information on the map.

I would have crossed the Green and Orange lines over each other at their eastern intersection, rather than the west to get a cleaner-looking T-junction after West End station. It’s also unfortunate that the Orange and Green lines are next to each other. As commenters pointed out on the Miami map, orange and green look very similar for colour-blind people.

Finally, it looks like US 75 and I-45 are missing their light grey centre stroke, as they’re the only two roads to be shown in a darker grey. And what happens to I-35W after it hits I-20 at the bottom left? It should continue south behind the legend, as US 67 does.

Our rating: A solid map, if not spectacular. Three stars.

Source: Official DART website