I first covered Igor’s vision for an improved rapid transit map for Kiev way back in 2011, and I was impressed with what I saw even back then. He’s continued to work on it and improve it since then, and it finally seems that his hard work is paying off. The latest version of his map is now being placed in some Metro trains as a pilot program, hopefully leading to full acceptance as the […]
Via: cuttingroomflaw: The map of the New York subway system that featured in The Warriors was replaced in the same year that the film was released, 1979. The map seen in the film was designed by Massimo Vignelli and was first introduced by the Metropolitan Transport Authority in 1972. “But many New Yorkers were outraged by what they saw as the misrepresentation of their city, while tourists struggled to relate Mr. Vignelli’s design to what […]
A curvaceous, minimalist diagram. Notably mainly for the strangely muted colour scheme (yellow, brown and purple?) and the interesting interchange station symbols, which make things very clear by showing two arrows pointing in opposite directions. Visually, I like the way that the diagram makes use of overprinting where the route lines overlap. Update: I’ve since found out that this map is a small inset on a much larger geographical map of bus services in Leningrad, […]
A fun little GIF from Appealing Industries that shows the construction of the modern New York Subway in sequence. I’d really like it to be just a little slower, and have a year clock somewhere. Bonus points would have been awarded for showing the construction and eventual demolition of the elevated lines as well. Still nicely done, and almost mesmeric after a while. Compare with this GIF of the Boston “T”. Source: Appealing Industries website […]
Question: Do you know what the organizational principle is for layering subway lines on the current NYC map? I received a question from meltedchandelier yesterday that asked: Hi, I’m hoping you can solve a query that a friend and I have been able to figure out forever. Do you know what the organizational principle is for layering certain NYC subway lines on top of others where they intersect on the current version of the map […]
Submitted by procrastinator-penguin, who says: Love your blog and it would be an honour to be featured! I found this map of Berlin by accident, and have no idea of the date, but I note The Wall is still marked on it. Personally, I think it’s quite beautiful in a way, if a little messy – I really don’t understand the red line well. I like the bold line colours, though. Transit Maps says: Thanks […]
Here’s a gorgeous and beautifully detailed map of New York (well, Manhattan, but at least it says there are “many places of interest on the other side of the river”!). It was designed by Nils Hansell, a graphic designer and sailing enthusiast who also worked for some years at IBM (according to the blurb over at the site I found the map, anyway). As well as some 300-odd numbered points of interest (as seen in […]
If you ever wanted your own copy of the latest iteration of this design classic, here’s your chance. The newly-formed design firm of Waterhouse Cifuentes (founded by Massimo Vignelli’s collaborators Yoshiki Waterhouse and Beatriz Cifuentes) is now offering superb prints on their SuperWarmRed Designs website. As the description on the website says: This poster of the MTA New York City Subway Diagram was designed in 2012 by Vignelli Associates and is used in the MTA’s […]
So how much do you think this little number set Motorola back? Because I wouldn’t mind this on my wall one little bit. Interior Design by Gensler, photo by Eric Laignel. Source: Interior Design Magazine, May 2014
Thanks to pretty much the entire Internet for sending me a link to Boston Magazine’s story about Maxwell Roberts’ work on alternate MBTA “T” maps. I’m not going to review them all, but I would recommend that you click through and evaluate them yourself. Personally, the rotated hexalinear version shown above is my favourite.* What I’m interested in talking about is Roberts’ approach to transit map design. Whereas most designers will automatically gravitate to a […]
