Transit
Map contest winners, part 1: The clean, contemporary design
1,304 people voted in our map contest, and our jury has made their choices. Thanks so much to all 17 people who submitted maps, everyone who voted, and to all of our jury members.
The consensus among readers differed in some interesting ways from the jury's picks, but one map placed highly on both lists. The #1 choice among readers, and the #2 choice for the jury, was Map C, by graphic designer Cameron Booth:
Map C, by Cameron Booth.
This one got 246 first place votes. In the instant-runoff voting, it remained on top through each round and ended up with 471 votes to 410 for the second place map.
The jury liked Booth's map's "generally clean feeling" and the way "shading rivers and parks distinguishes them from rail lines and makes the map appear more contemporary, without drastically changing the old map."
In his submission, Booth wrote,
With the addition of the Silver Line and new peak services, the thick, chunky lines of the old diagram just aren't going to work anymore. This is the chance to create something entirely new and start with a clean slate, not an adaptation of a 30-year-old design.The jury didn't share Booth's view on the horizontal station labels. They said that "keeping all station names horizontal loses ordinal clarity when the lines run east-west," like the names from L'Enfant to Stadium-Armory, where someone might miss the two stations whose labels appear on the opposite side of the line from the others.On this diagram, the route lines have been slimmed down to fit in the new lines without sacrificing the details of the city like the rivers and the National Mall. All labels are now set horizontally for easy reading, with no station names crossing or touching route lines at all
— a huge improvement in legibility over the haphazard angled labels of the old diagram. Line names are clearly denoted at each terminus to assist color-blind travelers (who see most of the diagram as shades of muddy brown), and a comprehensive legend at the bottom of the diagram clearly explains all services shown.
They also noted that the symbol used to connect Farragut North and West might make people think there's a real tunnel, rather than an out-of-system transfer.
One of the innovations the jury did appreciate was the parking symbols. They wrote, "Perhaps our least favorite feature of the current map are the car icons that indicate parking; several maps replaced them with clear but less obtrusive 'P' symbols." Booth called the current icon the "boxy Volvo" and was one of those to change it to the well-known blue circle with a white 'P.'
Jurors also split on some of the features. Booth used a separate line with a variation on the color to show the special rush-hour services, like a darker yellow for the Franconia-Greenbelt service. Some liked this, while others did not. One juror said, "Anything that makes it look like there are different, extra lines is just confusing."
The jury also didn't come to consensus on whether to give DC its own color, nor on the way Booth used small gaps in the line to denote stations instead of the more familiar small black-bordered circles. The DC coloration would likely be controversial with Metro Board members, given that the system is supposed to be a mostly equal partnership between DC, Maryland and Virginia.
The debate over the circles points out a fundamental question in these maps: how much to stay with the well-known design elements, or depart more radically. On this, the jury didn't always agree, and their consensus often didn't match that of riders. We'll look at that, and their #1 choice, tomorrow.
 | David Alpert is the Founder and Editor-in-Chief of Greater Greater Washington. He has had a lifelong interest in great cities and great communities. He worked as a Product Manager for Google for six years and has lived in the Boston, San Francisco, and New York metro areas in addition to Washington, DC. He loves the area which is, in many ways, greater than those others, and wants to see it become even greater.   |
Comments
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Why not adopt MTA nomenclature and use alphanumeric line names that share a common color for lines that overlap a lot, but which are still separately identifiable lines? For example, change "Orange" and "Peak Orange" to "A" and "B," and and "Yellow" and "Peak Yellow" to "1" and "2" to clarify that they are different lines.
by Ronald on May 24, 2011 12:57 pm
by Cassidy on May 24, 2011 1:08 pm
by John on May 24, 2011 1:10 pm
by Matt on May 24, 2011 1:13 pm
Also, every other train on the red line terminates at Grosvenor-Strathmore. Only Silver Spring has an indication that some trains terminate mid-line.
by thedofc on May 24, 2011 1:19 pm
by mc on May 24, 2011 1:21 pm
Actually, if you look at Grosvenor, there are 4 indications that trains stop there.
1. The station has a bubble instead of just being a gap.
2. The station name is bolded.
3. The Red Line (dark) beyond has a white line in it.
4. The legend identifies trains as running between Silver Spring and Grosvenor.
by Matt Johnson on May 24, 2011 1:21 pm
It will, starting next summer. Well, technically, it will be the Greenbelt-Franconia service, shown on this map as "yellow".
http://greatergreaterwashington.org/post/9546/
by Matt Johnson on May 24, 2011 1:22 pm
by express on May 24, 2011 1:25 pm
One - a minor error - the map wrongly puts Medical Center outside the beltway
Two - Solve the "color the district" issue by coloring all three jurisdictions differently - its helpful to shade them so that riders know that they are different states, but no reason to put DC above MD and VA.
Three - A little geographic accuracy could be added. The red line dips south between Judiciary and Chinatown - showing this, and accurately showing the red line between Union station and NY Ave on a North-Northeast axis, would help put Union Station in the correct place in relation to the capitol.
Fourth - A black outline of the capitol building and white house is helpful. Tourists are the ones who use this map the most - residents such as myself look at the map rarely for directions. So putting that stuff in there is a good idea
Fifth - I agree that the names need to be uniform in direction, and the parking symbol ideally should be by the station name (otherwise, as with MN Ave, it looks like there is a metro parking lot in the middle of capitol hill.
Sixth - I think the different lines for rush hour service are a good way to show the differences. Otherwise, its just confusing to depict rush hour service. But good job to the creator - I liked this map a lot.
by DavidY on May 24, 2011 1:25 pm
by Cassidy on May 24, 2011 1:27 pm
by Aaron on May 24, 2011 1:32 pm
Building an express line to Dulles would cost nearly as much as a dedicated line to the airport, and airport traffic alone would never come close to justifying that cost. If Tyson's Corner didn't lie between the airport and DC, that line would never have been built.
by c5karl on May 24, 2011 1:35 pm
I also agree that the way the peak services for blue and yellow are graphically confusing with the yellow and orange withing the blue(?) line (and they look brown until you get up close).
by Steven Yates on May 24, 2011 1:41 pm
I also don't like that this map left off rush-hour trains that terminate at Mt Vernon Square instead of continuing to Ft. Totten. I can see some value in adding a phantom "line" originating at Huntington and ending at Mt. Vernon Square and denoting that as a rush-hour line.
As for the horizontal orientation of the names on the east-west lines, I don't see any problem with it, except alternating the station names above-the-line and below-the-line (as in between Fed Center SW and Morgan Blvd) is a bit confusing.
by Scoot on May 24, 2011 1:47 pm
Out in the suburbs, Metro's trains run faster than many heavy commuter rail systems. (But this is all irrelevant to the discussion we're having)
I like this map (my favorite was the one that included major bus routes), but it could use some tweaks:
1) I like that DC is shaded. Metro's a "Hub & Spoke" system. The original design documents clearly state that it was not intended to efficiently move people between suburbs. Most people use it to get in and out of the city. Anyway, the effect is subtle enough that I can't see too many people having a problem with it. Also, all of the counties are labeled; however, the state lines are not, and there is nothing indicating that the diamond-shaped county is actually Washington, DC.
2) Kill the horizontal labels, and make the text a bit bigger.
3) The Capitol, White House, and Wash. Monument icons on the current map provide much-needed context for tourists. I'd try to find a way to work them back in.
4) The red line is confusing. I think we can tweak it to make it work. The legend on the map is also completely incorrect in this regard. Trains originating at Silver Spring do not travel to Glenmont.
5) Let's use the "subtitle" station naming scheme that many have suggested in other maps and the re-naming post. It really improves clarity.
6) For the "reduced yellow" Mt Vernon Sq - Fort Totten, and "reduced-peak red" Grosvenor-Shady Grove segments, I'd use a dotted line instead of a white stripe down the middle.
by andrew on May 24, 2011 1:47 pm
Line thickness means something, is my point. This map gives the exactly wrong indication of frequency by doubling up thickness for partial service (blue line detour, e.g) rather than halving it. It's a pretty map, sure, but fails utterly to address this important issue.
by reader on May 24, 2011 1:49 pm
by Jerome on May 24, 2011 1:50 pm
by Craig on May 24, 2011 1:54 pm
The Red Line does go under the Blue/Orange Line between Metro Center and Farragut North. So this map is accurate. Not sure why that matters to you. But the map is accurate.
by Matt Johnson on May 24, 2011 1:56 pm
Small typo: King St is served by VRE, not MARC
Small geographical error: Dulles is on the border of Fairfax ad Loudoun.
I'm not sure what's all going on on the red line with two shades and the other line thing, but I'm sure it makes sense for those who ride the red line.
by Jasper on May 24, 2011 1:59 pm
A couple of points:
I will always advocate horizontal station names over diagonal ones: Erik Spiekermann (who designed the Berlin U-Bahn diagram post-reunification) has talked to me at length about this and goes so far as to call a designer who can't put labels on a diagram horizontally "a loser". Typically blunt and to the point, but I share his general point of view. The London Underground diagram has all of its type horizontal, and alternates between names on top and below the east-west routes: no one seems to miss station names on it.
My decision to show the peak-hour routes as full lines was because I believe people like to be able to trace a route from beginning to end. "If I get on here, can I get to her without changing trains?" Especially important for tourists. Showing peak hour extensions as spurs doesn't necessarily allow this: some may think from the map that the extension is a shuttle that only takes them part of the way.
Anyway, I purposefully tried some very different things with this map - because I do believe that it needs to change. A few regrets with hindsight: I should have shown the landmarks, and the Farragut 'virtual' tunnel could perhaps have been denoted better.
by Cameron Booth on May 24, 2011 2:09 pm
My first thought as well. While nice and crisp, it doesn't scale too well. It also should be viable for printing at a small scale such as for a brochure, so that "Peak orange and Peak yellow" don't end up looking like brown lines.
@Matt Johnson :
"The Red Line does go under the Blue/Orange Line between Metro Center and Farragut North. So this map is accurate. Not sure why that matters to you. But the map is accurate."
Well, that's kind of irrelevant to a rider. The original had the lines at transfer stations shown above or below, indicating upper or lower platform, but that's missing here.
by Bob See on May 24, 2011 2:45 pm
London doesn't have icons of Big Ben or Buckingham Palace on its transit map. Paris doesn't have the Eiffel Tower or the Arc de Triomphe. New York doesn't have the Empire State Building or the Met. They all seem to get by just fine.
by Adam L on May 24, 2011 2:47 pm
I have one problem: although I'm glad to see the various Silver Line phases - in process and proposed, there is nothing that shows the planned Purple Line route.
Is that because the Purple Line route hasn't yet been finalized? Does anoyone know when the powers that be will "get up off it" and do the damn thing?
by ceefer66 on May 24, 2011 3:51 pm
The mapmakers were not asked to include the Purple Line. That's because it has not even gotten out of the planning process yet, and is far from a sure thing.
Unfortunately, it takes a long time for projects to go through the federal review process, and MTA is in that process now. The next step will be to apply for federal funding, after the completion of the design work.
The earliest estimate for opening is 2020.
by Matt Johnson on May 24, 2011 3:56 pm
Well, some maps have the destination in the station name (like Tour Eiffel) and the New York MTA map, while including some destinations in its station names, is imperfect on many levels and is far from a model of excellence among map designs. That it doesn't include icons denoting popular destinations does not necessarily mean other maps should follow suit.
I don't have a problem with icons, as long as they are well-placed. The icons on the current official Metro map are horribly placed. Perhaps appending the destination to the station name could help for a select few stations. Metro already does have pamphlets denoting tourist attractions at each station. Eventually, the ubiquity of smartphones and other navigation aides will make such wayfinding necessity obsolete.
by Scoot on May 24, 2011 3:57 pm
1. Originally, I had no idea why Mr. Booth was using 3 different schemes to show alternate services, but the legends solves that mystery nicely.
2. DC should absolutely get a pale, subtle shade like this. It doesn't mean DC is better or anything. It's to let people who aren't from the area know why there's that diamond-shaped thing on the map that doesn't get a label, even though all the MD and VA counties are labelled. This should not be controversial.
3. I don't like the geographic depiction of the eastern Red line. I suspect that was forced by Mr. Booth's decision to display the entirety of the Green Line station names instead of using the subtitle method.
by tom veil on May 24, 2011 4:07 pm
by Cameron Booth on May 24, 2011 4:26 pm
As to the design itself: Overall, I like it. It has a clean look, and I think the white bands to represent the stations looks crisper than the current circles and bulls-eye symbols. I also like the P symbols for parking and the labels at the ends of the lines to make things clearer for color-blind people.
Couple of minor comments:
1) I like showing the Beltway but I would revise the label to read "Capital Beltway (I-495)" for out-of-towners who's only knowledge of DC roads comes from AAA maps.
2) The VRE logo is too small
3) I'd get rid of the brown line for Shady Grove - Silver Spring. Instead, I'd just show a note pointing to the Forest Glen, Wheaton, and Glenmont stations (using a bracket symbol) with a note saying something like "Some Red Line trains stop at Silver Spring and do not service these stations".
4) The map should include one of those 2D barcodes where you can snap a photo of it with a smart phone and it will take you to the WMATA website.
by Marc on May 24, 2011 4:29 pm
by Herschel on May 24, 2011 4:52 pm
Red line from Glenmont to Silver Spring, call it the "R"
Red line from Silver Spring to Grosvenor, call it the "RR"
Green line, call it the "G"
Blue line, call it the "B"
Yellow line from Fran-Spring to Greenbelt, call it the "YG"
Yellow line from Ft. Totten to Huntington, call it the "Y"
Orange line from West Falls to Largo, call it the "ORR"
Orange line from Vienna to New Carrollton, call it the "OR"
Use letter codes but still keep the color as well.
However in order to do this metro is gonna need to reconfigure its software.
by Ishmael on May 24, 2011 5:35 pm
I don't think the average transit user cares much that different agencies operate different lines. They just want to know how to get from point A to point B.
The NYC map also shows LIRR and Metro-North stations. At the risk of cluttering things up considerably I do think that the new DC map should show the VRE and MARC lines.
by Marc on May 24, 2011 6:37 pm
I like the idea of adding QR Codes. It is something WMATA could also incorporate into the bus stops as well. A great way to convey additional information - especially with the proliferation of smartphones.
by Rob on May 24, 2011 6:52 pm
by Herschel on May 24, 2011 8:00 pm
My other impression is that due to the way the stops are drawn, it overemphasizes L'Enfant and Fort Totten over other stations, which would be incorrect assumption for someone visiting the city.
by eb on May 24, 2011 9:45 pm
I would like to simplify the use of the peak/off-peak secondary lines for red, orange, yellow and green. I actually liked the dashed lines as shown on many of the other maps.
I also liked the "smaller subtitles" when noting the long station names. Thank you for renaming "Tysons I&II to Tysons Blvd"
by Transport. on May 24, 2011 11:06 pm
The metrorail station, terminal building and gates at Dulles Airport are in Loudon County. Roughly 70 percent to the Dulles Airport property is within Loudon County. Three of the runways and about 10 percent of the fouth are in Loudon County.
by Sand Box John on May 25, 2011 12:21 am
by Herschel on May 25, 2011 12:29 am
I do agree the NYC map is not the greatest, but to be fair their system is infinitely more complex than DC's.
As for the argument that the DC streetcar (and, for the matter, the potential Crystal City streetcar and Purple Line lines) are not WMATA lines - true, but I like the way the SEPTA Philly map has it. They show the PATCO line in a different line style than the other services, and in the map key they show the PATCO line with the note "not a SEPTA service".
by Marc on May 25, 2011 9:40 am
I think it's a great map. As a mapmaker myself, I know it's a tough task to try and display all the information you need AND make it look good - and I think this map succeeds at both, and is an improvement on the current system map.
Yeah, there are a few nitpicky details that could have been better, but there are plenty of those in the existing Metro map too. WMATA should go with the look of this map and correct the few minor things that bother them.
Good job!
by Scott B on May 25, 2011 10:12 am
by Cameron Booth on May 25, 2011 11:37 am
by Jasper on May 26, 2011 10:03 am
- I like that your map is more geographically accurate than the current one (though like @DavidY, think the red line near Union Station should be more accurate)
- I like the horizontal station naming. I think it works for especially well for the tube and Paris Metro maps because they have little nubs coming off the stations next to the name...something like that might better here especially at transfer stations such as Metro Center and Gallery Place
- I like the parking, commuter rail, bus, and airport symbols...in that they don't require deciphering the meaning through a legend. They're meaning is more or less obvious.
- I prefer the use of station subtitles (though I worry that it will lead to a proliferation of longer station names)
- I prefer the dotted line system for peak service
- I guess landmarks like the WH and Capitol could be added
overall, my favorite map of the bunch. Great job!
by 7r3y3r on May 26, 2011 2:14 pm
I prefer to see the Beltway for reference and like the more map-standard "P" symbol for stations with parking as opposed to the larger, more dominant looking car symbols.
There is also a use of hierarchy in the fonts for the station labeling and the map reference features! I would change Potomac River to be a water-type font symbol (this is nitpicking).
I would also adjust the labeling to be better aligned in the same fashion as the Orange line to New Carollton for the Blue line to Largo.
Nice work!
by CK on May 29, 2011 1:26 pm
by Rick on Jun 1, 2011 7:44 pm
The Green/Yellow/Peak Yellow corridor through downtown can be a bit confusing. Also, wasn't Yellow supposed to terminate at Greenbelt beginning sometime 2012?
In the legend boxes at the bottom, I suggest that it is redundant to say, under "Additional Peak Services" for example, "Mornings: 6am to 9.30am". How about just "6am to 9:30am" ?
And in that realm, you've referenced time as both "9.30am" and "9:30am" - just a typo, I'm sure.
Nice touch on the two shades of red (or red and brick red or brown). Might be harder for a color-blind person to read.
VRE is missing from King St and there's no MARC (did someone else already point that out? -- sorry if so).
I like the subtitle idea. Can we put "Ronald Reagan" in subtitles?
Station names at 45 degree angles on the E-W segments.
All in all, well-done. I'd print one out and carry it around.
by Jack Love on Jun 2, 2011 12:15 pm
Can't really say with respect to local practice in the NYC area, but I do feel that folks are spatially aware of where MD begins and the District ends. It provides some much-needed context.
by Jack Love on Jun 2, 2011 12:20 pm
The NYC transit map shows Manhattan, Queens, Bronx, etc. in much the same way.
I think it's good for tourist and a map can provide better context for many types of users by depicting both natural features, such as a river, and cultural references, such as the Mall, political boundaries, etc. The "base map" provides context in this manner but at the same time does not take away from the subject or key theme of the map.
That's why this map is great, IMHO -- it works well for web mapping use as well as for printing.
by MapGirl on Jun 6, 2011 12:36 am
by R S on Jun 6, 2011 3:37 pm
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