I absolutely love this almost abstract representation of the Gotthardbahn from a Swiss advertising brochure from 1957. Just major cities, the distinctive loops and spirals of the line (described in detail in this post from 2014) and the famous 15-kilometre-long Gotthard Tunnel shown illustratively cutting through a massive mountain. Source: Retours.eu
Transit maps for Naples have been decidedly average and piecemeal in the past (see here and here for past reviews), so it’s lovely to see this new official map presenting a fully integrated view of rapid transit in and around the city. Designed by Andrea Spinosa of CityRailways — whose Atlas of Italian Rail Transit poster we reviewed back in 2014 — this is definitely a huge step in the right direction, being much better […]
Transit Maps previously reviewed Blue Crow’s London Underground Architecture and Design Map back in 2017, and they’ve just released two new maps in the series celebrating Paris and New York’s transit systems (there’s also another map in the series for Moscow). As before, the maps are simple but elegant in their execution, with a geographical map of the system on one side and the explanatory text and photos on the other. They come in handsome […]
This is an advertisement produced by Gothenburg’s Västtrafik transit agency (see their press release here, in Swedish). The tag line translates to “Electrically powered since 1902”, with the image showing Gothenburg’s tram network in the form of an electrical circuit board. In their own words, the ad “reminds [us] that climate-smart electric vehicles are old news.” The map is a very close facsimile of the official tram/ferry map (August 2018, 3 stars), though with the […]
Having just reviewed Kristoffer Bæk and Pasha Omelekhin’s superb new rail map for Copenhagen (October 2019, 4.5 stars), let’s take a look at what the official map looks like with the addition of the new ring Metro line. It’s very obviously an evolution of the existing and distinctive DSB design style (last reviewed on Transit Maps back in 2014, 4 stars), and may even use the exact same base map underneath the route lines. Apart […]
Sometime after I reviewed Kristoffer’s original unified Copenhagen-area transit map (January 2019, 4 stars), he began to collaborate with Pasha Omelekhin, a designer probably most well-known for his alternative Berlin map. They’ve just released their revised map, and it’s really quite wonderful. Designwise, it’s definitely an evolution of Kristoffer’s original map, but I can see where the collaboration has resulted in marked improvements to the map. The interchanges have a more consistent design now, one […]
Submitted by Owain, who says: Love your blog. I’d really like to get your thoughts and, of course, a rating on a transit map I have created using Adobe Photoshop. It is for a fictional brand I have created called ‘neo’ (North East Overground) which ties together real express bus routes which radiate from Newcastle opon Tyne. The bus routes I have tied together under the ‘neo’ banner are a hotchpotch of different operators, ticketing […]
Submitted by Harry, who says: Hi Cam – I’m a big fan of your blog, been reading for years. I’ve always wanted to try designing a transit map, but hadn’t found a good system to start with (I live in NYC, which is both daunting and already done well)… until recently! I visited Sorrento in June, and had the chance to ride the Circumvesuviana from Naples to Sorrento and round-trip from Sorrento to Pompeii. Something […]
Here’s a beautiful map from 1954, showing the lines of the Compañía General de Ferrocarriles Catalanes (CGFC), the predecessor of today’s Llobregat–Anoia commuter rail line. The map is mainly notable for its restrained use of the four colours available to it: black line work with blue, red and yellow all performing precisely one function each. I also enjoy the economical depiction of Barcelona, which is represented solely by Montjuic, the port area and the towering […]
Every so often, I unexpectedly come across something that’s almost magical in its awesomeness, and this astounding data visualization/map from 1855 is one of those things. I mean, just look at how gorgeous these sample plates are: Designed by Joseph Stummer, these pages chart the history of the Kaiser Ferdinands-Nordbahn from its foundation in 1838 through to 1853. Each lithographic plate documents two years in astounding detail, with data shown for just about every aspect […]
