All posts tagged: England

Historical Map: Tyne and Wear Metro, 1981

December 6, 2013
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A beautiful early map for this system, clearly showing how much of it was planned from the start. Apart from a few name changes (the proposed “Old Fold” station became Gateshead Stadium, for example), this is recognisably the same map that existed as far into the future as the year 2000, when the proposed extension to Sunderland made its appearance. The outlined route lines to show proposed/future extensions work wonderfully well, making an excellent contrast […]

Photo: Tube Map Livery on GB Railfreight Engine 66721

November 14, 2013
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A couple of great photos showing the unique Underground Map-themed livery on GB Railfreight engine 66721. The left side of the engine shows a portion of the original 1933 H.C. Beck design, while the right side shows the corresponding part of the 2013 Tube map. I believe that this engine  is used to perform maintenance work on sections of the Underground, so the theme is certainly appropriate, as is the engine’s name plaque, seen in […]

Historical Poster: London Transport Jubilee Line Opening, 1979

October 16, 2013
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Okay, here’s just one more Tube-map themed poster (for now). This one’s a little more contemporary than the others I’ve featured recently, dating from early 1979. The cheerful little Tube train – which looks like a model that’s been photographed, rather than an illustration –  is actually a pretty reasonable stand-in for the geographical layout of the new line, which then ran from Stanmore to a new Charing Cross station (later extensions mean that the […]

Historical Poster: “Be Map Conscious”, London Transport, 1945

October 15, 2013
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Here’s another beautiful old London Underground poster that features the Tube map, apparently produced to help servicemen unfamiliar with London get around. The poster, which basically acts as a Tube Map for Dummies guide, was placed next to the map in stations, with the abstract guard pointing towards it. The “tear-away” section at the bottom right shows a slightly modified version (angles aren’t at 45 degrees, the Aldwych spur is missing) of the central part […]

Historical Map: “Design for Shopping” Poster for London Transport, 1935

October 15, 2013
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You just can’t beat 1930s London Underground posters – a superb mix of art, design and branding. This one’s a real beauty! Of interest is that it playfully echoes the look of Beck’s Tube Diagram, then only two years old. Design by O’Keeffe. Source: Mikey Ashworth/Flickr

Historical Map: LNER Northumberland and Durham Quad Royal Poster, 1934

October 11, 2013
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Painted by prolific transport poster artist Montague B. Black, this lovely poster shows the services of the London and North Eastern Railway (LNER) in England’s north east in 1934. The view stretches from Middlesborough all the up the Northumberland coast to the Scottish Borders and beyond. Each city is painted in imprecise but evocative detail, as is Hadrian’s Wall, shown stretching from Carlisle to Newcastle across the centre of the map. The late afternoon colour […]

Fantasy Map: Tyneride BRT Network Map

September 30, 2013
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Utterly plausible bus rapid transit (BRT) system map for the Tyneside region of England, designed as if it was a division of the Tyne & Wear Metro. While I can’t comment on whether Nexus/Metro would ever actually operate its own BRT network, I certainly can’t fault the aesthetics of the map itself. It’s absolutely spot-on, mimicking the look of the official Metro rail map (Nov 2011, 3.5 stars) perfectly. The 30/60-degree angles and the use […]

Detail – Elephant & Castle, London Bus Map

September 25, 2013
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When you have sixteen routes passing through one stop, it might be time to rethink your approach to station/interchange design. I do note that the current TfL “Buses from Elephant & Castle” spider map (external PDF link) shows this interchange with a geographical street map – a huge improvement which also has the advantage of showing you exactly where each bus stand is (there are eighteen!) and which buses stop at them. Source: Mach V/Flickr

Historical Map: Liverpool Overhead Railway, c. 1935

September 19, 2013
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The Liverpool Overhead Railway operated from 1893 to 1956, and was a unique example of an American-style elevated railway in the United Kingdom. It was the world’s first electric elevated railway and the first to use automatic signalling and electric signal lights. Serving Liverpool’s then thriving docks, it quickly earned the affectionate nickname, “The Dockers’ Umbrella”, as the elevated structure sheltered dock workers from the rain as they moved from dock to dock. This attractive […]