Question: Is there a reason that props departments often alter transit maps used in movies? Is it to get around copyright issues?
Answer: Absolutely! Almost every official transit map in the world is copyrighted and owned by the agency it represents. This means that permission – and often, a hefty licensing fee – is required to use the map for commercial purposes. So, rather than go through that, most TV shows/movies will quickly pull together their own version of the transit map they need, with varying results.