The chapters about designing for changes in transit networks, electronic maps, and standardization. Also the sample chapter ‘Bends’ is available for free
The final three chapters of Ilya Birman’s book Designing Transit Maps are out. The chapters are ‘Changes in the network’, ‘Electronic maps’, and ‘Standardization’.
The book speaks of transit maps history, important principles of their design, and how they evolve together with their networks. The author talks about techniques: plotting the lines, denoting the stops, choosing the fonts, and composing the final poster.
Few designers have an occasion to design a subway map. But the principles and techniques discussed are applicable to any tasks of complex information display: org charts, family trees, control‑flow diagrams, fire escape plans, military operation plans, project timelines, architectural drawings. The book sharpens the reader’s eye and inculcates attention to detail.
Changes in the network
The chapter explores common changes to a transportation system and showing them on a map. How do you show the renaming or closing of a station? Reconstruction or opening of a route section? A new line? How to prepare print maps in advance for a fragment‑by‑fragment update to avoid replacing of all maps in the entire transportation system? What means to inform passengers should be used in addition to maps? How can the design of a map account for future changes to the transportation system?
Electronic maps
The chapter covers the evolution from LED boards to interactive maps on large touch screens and in mobile applications. The author touches upon the topic of user interface design and discusses why, despite the advantages of electronic maps, physical wayfinding systems are being actively developed in cities.
Standardization
A transportation system usually has more than one map. The multiple maps form a living system adaptable to changing circumstances. Each specific variant of the map should not just be good in itself, but should also be in harmony with other variants. It should preferably use the same grid, colors, fonts, designations of lines, stops, transfers, directions. So as the map matures, standards have to be created, for both graphics and text. But the designer must be careful: on the one hand, not to do harm by premature standardization, on the other, to understand in time that a particular solution is ready to become a standard.
Test
After the chapter, there is an interactive test on the whole fourth part, The system.
Sample chapter
The chapter ‘Bends’ is available for free. In the chapter Ilya Birman shows good and bad ways to bend the lines, introduces the bend visibility principle, talks about harmonizing the bends in line bundles.
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