The best thing about this map is not the bus routes but the station names. Main names in bold black with extra names in smaller light gray underneath.

by Lou on May 27, 2011 10:29 am • link • report

While I like the idea of including buses to encourage people to make connections they wouldn't using only rail, I think it's perilous when it's on a diagrammatic map that lacks a defined scale.

Take the 90/92 buses, for instance. They both come close to the Woodley Park (1/4 mile) and Navy Yard (1/2 mile) stops. But because the metro map is only diagrammatic (not geographic), it's hard to tell if these are both feasible connections.

by Ted on May 27, 2011 10:38 am • link • report

I really like the bus routes shown on the map.

by greent on May 27, 2011 10:42 am • link • report

Ha. I really liked Map N, and had a sneaking suspicion that its creator was either a GGW contributor, or about to be invited to become one.

It wasn't the best Metrorail map of the bunch, and it's practically useless as an actual bus map. However, it reminds people that the bus is there, and points them to a more detailed bus map, when they're traveling a route that has an obviously-better bus option available (Silver Spring to Bethesda being a particularly egregious example).

I also liked the inclusion of rail-deprived neighborhoods that are still easily accessible by transit. Georgetown, Bailey's Crossroads, Shirlington, and National Harbor all deserve inclusion on the map. (The inclusion of Adams Morgan as an actual neighborhood was also a snarky, albeit percipient jab at that station's ridiculously inaccurate name)

The bus routes are not at all clearly marked in the core (but again, the actual bus map has this same problem). However, again, they *are* clearly marked in areas that are more spread out, which is where Metro should focus on attracting new riders.

The bus is a severely underutilized resource in DC. I applaud any effort that gets a larger and more diverse group of people riding it. This already seems to be happening to an extent -- I'm rarely the only white guy on the bus anymore. It's safe, fast, cheap, and efficient.

by andrew on May 27, 2011 10:44 am • link • report

Has anyone considered a "L'Enfant City" map? Focusing on a smaller area would give more space to show bus lines, circulator, and bikeshare stations. And it would be more useful for tourists, who don't care about the very ends of the Metro lines.

I don't think the Metro cars would be the right place for such a map, but perhaps the downtown stations or a smartphone app.

Speaking of smart phone apps, there is a strong argument establishing a website to collect maps and apps, and putting the URL PROMINENTLY on the signage in Metro cars.

by djb on May 27, 2011 10:47 am • link • report

I liked the inclusion of bus lines both for the additional information and because it keeps the map directionally honest. My main problem with the current rendering is that it distorts both distance and, in some cases, location. Farragut North should not be parallel to U Street. Connecting the metro map with bus lines gives it context in terms of the street grid.

by Meggie on May 27, 2011 10:48 am • link • report

I like the bus routes, but they make downtown really busy, and I think the bus lines going over the top of the Metro lines could confuse people... maybe there should be some sort of zoomed inset for downtown, like with the bus maps in the bus-stop shelters?

by James on May 27, 2011 10:55 am • link • report

The biggest problem I see with adding bus routes is the complexity of having it all on a pocket-sized (or phone-sized) map. Also, Bus routes aren't that useful unless you know what streets they traverse, which is not apparent on this map.

That being said, this would be interesting to have IN stations, as in replacing the

PS... Did the creator only add Metrobus and Circulator routes? It may be helpful to add local bus routes.

by John M on May 27, 2011 11:03 am • link • report

I definitely applaud this mad for being the most ambitious of all 17 maps, but I, too, felt the execution was a little less than perfect. I definitely interpreted the brief as designing a poster to the same dimensions as those seen on Metro trains and felt that the bus routes were too thin and too lightly colored to be useful in that environment.

by Cameron Booth on May 27, 2011 11:13 am • link • report

WMATA already prints slightly different maps for pocket-sized, web-sized, and giant train/station-sized; as do most agencies.

No reason why they'd change that practice now. This map wouldn't be suitable for anything other than the giant maps.

Heck. I seem to remember London using different maps inside/outside of the fare control zone.

by andrew on May 27, 2011 11:16 am • link • report

At least the bus lines on this map are more useful than on the now-useless WMATA bus maps that managed to make all the routes the same color. Every downtown street is just a red blob, you can't actually tell where the buses go.

by MLD on May 27, 2011 11:24 am • link • report

OMG, I need a map like this so bad. I'm moving to DC in just a couple weeks (from the Midwest), and I'll just be learning the system. I've been to visit 8-10 times over the years (and know the Metro pretty well), but I have NO idea about where the bus-lines run.

by Rooster_Ties on May 27, 2011 11:27 am • link • report

I wasn't crazy about the bus lines on the map -- it just gets too visually busy.

It would be interesting to know the average amount of time that someone looks at the Metro map. I bet it's very brief. You put too much on there and it gets confusing.

A better option would be to include the streetcar lines as they open. Streetcars will be more important to infrequent riders than buses. There are fewer streetcars than buses, so it won't be so busy on the map. And streetcar lines are fixed, so there's less concern about having to constantly redesign the map to account for changes.

I am intrigued by the neighborhood names, though. I think this actually relieves some of the pressure to have long station names: if your neighborhood will be on the map, maybe it's not the end of the world if it's not on the station name. Removing the bus lines would actually make more room for this.

by Gavin on May 27, 2011 11:34 am • link • report

Reading distance matters when evaluating these kinds of maps. It's not enough to say that you're designing a poster-size map; you also need to know the distance from map to reader.

Tiny, pocket-size maps can fit dense information because people are reading them at arm's length. Maps in train cars? I'm not sure. Right now, the train maps are sized for reading at a 5-15 foot distance, which forces bold strokes and simplification.

I have a feeling that people don't actually need to read the maps from that far away. I suspect that:

(1) On uncrowded trains, people have the space to move within 3-6 feet of the map.

(2) On crowded, rush-hour trains, people can't see the map from a distance and need to move to within 3-6 feet.

I'm curious. I'll watch the next time I'm on a train, doing a little casual user testing. I'd be interested in learning what others observe.

by David Ramos on May 27, 2011 11:51 am • link • report

What about a broader map showing connections to county-run systems? In Fairfax County I'm thinking most especially of the Fairfax Connector and REX systems, both of which link up to Huntington. And at least one of which (the Connector) might be able to help relieve some of the pressure on highway traffic to Route 1...if handled correctly.

I can see problems with this:

1.) Where does it end? Eventually you're putting too much information on the map, and it defeats its own purpose.

2.) Would ridership warrant it? On certain lines, I can think yes - but not on all.

Even so, it would help a lot with planning.

(Although looking at that map, I'm starting to think maybe the Connector IS about as useless as I thought it was...)

by Ser Amantio di Nicolao on May 27, 2011 12:04 pm • link • report

I just noticed that this map leaves off the parking icons.

by Michael Perkins on May 27, 2011 12:04 pm • link • report

I like the addition of the frequent bus lines. I am not it's the best way to do it, because many lines kinda hang in the air, but at least it's a serious attempt.

by Jasper on May 27, 2011 12:24 pm • link • report

Well, how are we going to convince people to ride the bus if they know they can just park their car at a Metro station?

by dan reed! on May 27, 2011 12:25 pm • link • report

Dr. Gridlock (who was a jury member in this contest) had a blog entry about the contest and someone posted a comment about the inclusion of bus lines in which the person said that he think it's not very useful because of the difficulty of knowing where the routes go. I posted a reply and so I'll just cut and paste it here:

--------------
I saw the entry with the bus lines and I didn't think it was useful because it was the same "schematic" design as the subway map. Put differently, when you ride the bus, the specific location of the bus stops is a lot more important than it is when you ride the subway if you're driving or taking the bus to the subway. If you told me that the Fairfax Connector's 231 route "stops in Kingstowne" I'd never ride it because Kingstowne is a big area and merely saying it stops "in" that big area is meaningless as to whether it stops near my house (in fact there is a stop about half a mile away, easy walk if it's not pouring down rain or super-hot out). I think there could be a use for indicating CERTAIN bus lines on the WMATA subway map. If there were a line connecting the two ends of the Red Line, for instance, say Bethesda to Silver Spring, that might be useful information for someone who doesn't want to ride the subway all the way downtown and all the way back out. Same might apply if there were a bus line that connected, say, Franconia-Springfield and Vienna (I don't think there is). The bus to BWI Airport is another useful one for inclusion. For those sorts of lines the important info for the subway rider is not exactly where all the bus stops are but rather where the endpoints are, so they fit well onto a subway map. But a bus used for commuting to local destinations not on the subway system requires a higher level of detail than can be offered by the "schematic" form WMATA prefers.

I do think it would be a good idea for WMATA to add a QR code to the map that would link to the bus information on their website. (For those not familiar, "QR codes" are those weird-looking square digital codes that are sort of like barcodes, though not the same thing; you scan them using a mobile phone's camera and a code-reading app.) One of the contest entries included a QR code linking to foreign-language versions of the subway map, which was a good idea. Adding a code for the bus information would entail a negligible cost while providing an easy way to get at that information.

by Rich on May 27, 2011 12:28 pm • link • report

BTW, a follow-up thought that only occurred to me now regarding QR codes: I think any QR codes on the Metro map would work best if they were located towards the upper half of the map. This is because the lower part of the maps posted on the trains is often obscured by people sitting in front of it. Sure, people can ask someone to move, but the people most likely to find a QR code useful are the ones least likely to know that it's there if someone is sitting in front of it.

by Rich on May 27, 2011 12:31 pm • link • report

I think he makes a valid point regarding also giving consideration to maps that aren't printed, those that are viewed through websites and smart phones, the ability to layer addtional real time information.

by JF on May 27, 2011 12:59 pm • link • report

In some places, I agree with others that the diagram makes it hard to tell if the bus routes are worth taking. BUT... as andrew says, the bus routes that branch off and go to underserved areas are a great idea. Perhaps maps that includes fewer bus lines, but puts metro-lacking destinations in, along with estimated travel time.

Just graphically, the dotting method is novel, and I kind of like it.

by Neil Flanagan on May 27, 2011 1:02 pm • link • report

This was my favorite map by far. Obviously the clutter downtown is a major problem in terms of legibility, although what the bus markers are most useful for is accessing places outside of downtown that aren't served by metro. Perhaps rather than trying to depict the entirety of each line, they could be terminated outside of downtown with an arrow listing where they terminate. I.E. the S2/S4/S9 would stop above of Farragut North with an arrow saying "To L'Enfant Plaza."

That might make it easier to include relevant downtown placemarkers, such as The Mall, the White House, etc. Such neighborhood markers are a great idea and alleviate the issue of such a diagrammatic map. This might sound counterintuitive, but this map more an exercise in demonstrating connections than faithfully depicting locations. The mere fact that this map is able to tell you (and any number of tourists) how to get to Georgetown, the Kennedy Center, Old Town, National Harbor and Dulles makes it almost invaluable.

I think this is a great proof of concept and a differently "curated" set of bus lines with more neighborhoods would make a map Metro could not afford to say no to.

PS @djb: You don't want to type metroopensdoors.com into your smartphone? Am I just imagining things or is that awful domain all over the Metro?

by Thomas Jansen on May 27, 2011 1:16 pm • link • report

Seriously, is there a worse transit agency URL than metroopensdoors.com?

Everyone in the know uses wmata.com.

by MLD on May 27, 2011 1:20 pm • link • report

David, this map doesn't work well as a Metrorail system map for the above-stated reasons, but it works as an AMAZING diagramatic frequent/key bus routes map. Simply emphasise the routes more using stronger colors and fade/grey out the rail lines, stations and names. Bam! An incredible bus map. When can I expect a draft?

by MDE on May 27, 2011 1:43 pm • link • report

To jump on MLD's first comment, will GGW ever have a contest to redesign that awful, terrible and useless Metro bus map?

by Shipsa01 on May 27, 2011 1:56 pm • link • report

I would love to see an improved bus/metro map online. Take a look at Chicago's (CTA) or San Francisco's (MUNI). They overlay the subway and bus routes on a map of the city. You can easily find which bus route goes where you need to go, what other lines it intersects or goes near to plan any transfers, and don't need to guess which bus route map to look at as you do with WMATA. Chicago even lists every stop for every bus line, if minimizing your walking distance is an issue. This would not work as a graphic - which the map above makes a good stab at - but you can get an overall idea of what your possibilities are before drilling down to a specific route map. Very helpful for tourists and newcomers.

by busgirl1 on May 27, 2011 1:58 pm • link • report

Rich's statement on QR codes got me thinking: I really like the idea of using a QR code to make additional maps (in translation, for buses, etc) available. I don't live in DC anymore, so I don't know how the cell network coverage in the tunnels is nowadays, but poor connectivity would make the QR code fairly useless.

by Lucre on May 27, 2011 2:27 pm • link • report

Seconding Shipsa01. The current Rail map is currently pretty usable, and even the worse "thick line" redesign proposals are not terrible.

The current bus map is virtually useless.

by andrew on May 27, 2011 2:45 pm • link • report

Lucre, you make a pretty good point and I hadn't thought about the cellular coverage because I've always had a Verizon (or Bell Atlantic) mobile phone since I first got one in 1999, so for me the coverage has never been an issue. I tend to forget that other carriers don't necessarily have a signal in the tunnels. Still, I figure that the expense of adding a QR code or two to the map is likely negligible overall, so there's not much reason not to add it. Some passengers will only be able to access it above-ground, true, but I tend to think that including the feature so that it's available for some people is better than omitting it just because not everyone can access it. After all, plenty of people do not have phones that are capable of scanning those things, and plenty of people do not have World Wide Web access on their phones. But when it would cost almost nothing to add the feature, why not do it?

by Rich on May 27, 2011 3:12 pm • link • report

The inclusion of bus routes show all too well what a mess our routes are. DC and Metro tinker with this route or that, but I do not recall any comprehensive look at the system itself. For example, do we want many lines that end up in downtown with many transfers - a hub and spoke approach or do we want many like the 30s that run from one side of DC to the other? I think the bus map is more a historical document than a functioning system with some logic behind it.

by Carl Bergman on May 28, 2011 1:51 pm • link • report

the inclusion of bus lines is practically useless because the scale of the map is so highly distorted. i would rather see the inclusion of major streets and avenue to give me a perspective on where i actually am.

by pecc on May 28, 2011 3:52 pm • link • report

I love everything about this map except the bus routes.

What if someone wants to take the bus, but can't be sure, since the map isn't to scale and lacks cross-streets, that they can get to their destination? They're either going to look at a more detailed bus map or stick to rail. Either way, marking the bus routes on the main Metro map isn't helpful.

by jakeod on May 28, 2011 5:20 pm • link • report

jakeod, they're absolutely helpful. The person goes from thinking "you cant get there from here" to "oh look, a bus!"

by JJJJJ on May 30, 2011 2:58 am • link • report

@JJJJJ,

Getting people to think "Oh look, a bus!" is not worth cluttering up the core Metro map like this. Why not just have a large note in the legend stating "No Metrorail station near your destination? Use Metrobus to connect - consult the nearby bus map for transfer information."

by jakeod on May 30, 2011 11:31 am • link • report

One of the things that is omitted from all of the maps is the small text that identifies the location of the stations. WMATA's PDF versions of the system map omitted them as well. They appear on the printed maps aboard the train and as I recall on the backlit maps on the platforms and mezzanines. The location text identifies the general location of the station. What I would like to see is all of escalator and elevators locations identified individually by either intersection corner or street address. Also use a wheelchair icon next to elevators locations. Including the elevators locations ties into the fixes that Matt mentions in his 05-26-2011 post Confusing Metro elevator signs simple to fix.

by Sand Box John on May 30, 2011 2:26 pm • link • report

jakeod, people know buses exist, people dont know where the buses for. Thats the entire point of the map.

And have you had the pleasure of using metros PDF bus map? Good luck with that.

by JJJJJ on May 30, 2011 3:30 pm • link • report