Passenger Trains > Fascinating visual history of the NYC subway map

NYC Subway Map article from NY TImes

play through all the pages to see interesting facts about the map's evolution



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/02/19 09:03 by RevRandy.

I think the current map is fine, but should be more specific about exactly where on the various lines the curves are. IOW, be more geographic than schematic. 

Great, thanks for sharing.

Very cool!  Thanks for the link.  At the NYC Transit Museum, there is/was an exhibit on the evolution of the NYC Subway maps from the very beginning too.  Fascinating stuff indeed!

Cheers,
Harry



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/02/19 09:16 by tracktime.

Transit map design is so interesting!  Thanks for that cool link!

This is a terrific book. It has transit maps from all systems in the world. For bigger ones, it has a variety of them, from different eras. https://www.amazon.com/Transit-Maps-World-Expanded-Collection/dp/0143128493
 

Odd they didn't show the 1970s map, so
everyone could see how bad it was.

That's pretty cool, thanks for the link.

I recently used a variation of that map to find my way around parts of NYC (Manhattan), where I had not been in over 40 years. It helped! Rode 4 trains plus the PATH.

TJY

tracktime Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Very cool!  Thanks for the link.  At the NYC
> Transit Museum, there is/was an exhibit on the
> evolution of the NYC Subway maps from the very
> beginning too.  Fascinating stuff indeed!
>
> Cheers,
> Harry

I saw that exhibit.  It was wonderful!

Very cool, thanks for posting.

Posted from iPhone

In 1931, the London Underground Electric Railway (aka the London Underground) went from a map which displayed surface details and the location of the Underground lines complete with curves and places they served on the surface, to the Harry Beck map, which used straight and paralell lines. Like the New York map, the different lines are colour coded and interchange points are emphasized. Almost 80 years on, the Beck Map style is still in use and other cities around the world have adopted the design.

In my opinion ...

The more complicated the system the more the system needs a Harry Beck style map. Less focused on showing every twist, turn and alignment shift and more focused on being easily readable. Effort should be made to keep close stations on different lines close together (to help the reader understand that it could be closer to walk between two stations than all of the up/down distant travel - possibly including a train change - that could be easier done on foot). But other than that, I like a Beck style map.

If one likes a 100% geographic map may I suggest putting the rail routes on a geographic bus map?

justalurker66 Wrote:

> If one likes a 100% geographic map may I suggest
> putting the rail routes on a geographic bus map?

They already are, though rail lines are very de-emphasized. But all the buses are already make it a colorful plate of spaghetti. I think the current subway map is fine, but the curves should be sharper and put precisely where they actually are. If you look at the J line (brown), there is a sharp curve east of Crescent Street and another west of Cypress Hills. Yet the map shows a flowing zig-zag spanning 4 stations. 



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/04/19 10:33 by joemvcnj.

I remember seeing an exhibit of Underground maps at the (amazing) London Transport museum in 1997 and being astonished that the iconic Beck London Underground map dated all the way back to the early 30s It seemed much more modern and current than being 88 years old.

I think the style of network layout rather than geographical accuracy works well especially for underground systems. The fact the the Beck style has lasted so long and sired maps for so many other systems tells me it does its job well. Unfortunately New York is an outlyer. I always had great admiration for the Vignelli map.

WP17

eminence_grise Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> In 1931, the London Underground Electric Railway
> (aka the London Underground) went from a map which
> displayed surface details and the location of the
> Underground lines complete with curves and places
> they served on the surface, to the Harry Beck map,
> which used straight and paralell lines. Like the
> New York map, the different lines are colour coded
> and interchange points are emphasized. Almost 80
> years on, the Beck Map style is still in use and
> other cities around the world have adopted the
> design.