At a recent talk at the New York City Transit Museum, Massimo Vignelli, designer of the iconic 1972 NYC subway map, discussed his opinions of the subway maps that preceded and followed his groundbreaking design.
If your best known creation was hanging in the Museum of Modern Art, you might have reason to look askance at the designs that preceded and followed it. And when designer Massimo Vignelli recently offered his impressions of some of the other New York City subway maps that have appeared over the last century, he didn't disappoint.
For a little background: "When the NY MTA hired Vignelli to develop a new plan for subterranean navigation, he was tasked with streamlining the wayfinding process for riders and bringing New York into the future," says Tom Lisi. "Train routes were straightened into neat angles to make a tidy diagram out of the actual snarl of criss-crossing tunnels. Forty years later, graphic designers still laud Vignelli’s map as a triumph."
Here's Vignelli on the map that replaced his in 1979, after "confused passengers convinced the MTA to replace it":
"This is the map that came after our map. If you have to have abstract geography, why do you have it in any case? Why [sic] have it at all?
“And look at here [pointing to curved path of train line at lower Manhattan]. Who cares if the subway has to make a [turn] like that? I’m going, we’re all going, from Point A to Point B. How we get there is the conductor’s problem, not mine.”
And on the 2008 map:
“We belong to a culture of balloons. [The designers] grow up with comic books, and this is what happens. There’s balloons all over the place. It’s ridiculous.”
FULL STORY: Vignelli, Designer of Famous Subway Map, Defends His Version Over These Others (IMAGES)

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

USGS Water Science Centers Targeted for Closure
If their work is suspended, states could lose a valuable resource for monitoring, understanding, and managing water resources.

End Human Sacrifices to the Demanding Gods of Automobile Dependency and Sprawl
The U.S. has much higher traffic fatality rates than peer countries due to automobile dependency and sprawl. Better planning can reduce these human sacrifices.

Trump: Federal Government Won’t Pay for California HSR
The President has targeted federal funding for the California bullet train project since his first administration.

San Francisco Enhances Urban Planning Initiatives with Green Infrastructure
San Francisco incorporates green infrastructure in its city development initiatives, elevating the importance of sustainability in urban planning.

Chicago Approves Green Affordable Housing Plan
The Mayor’s plan calls for creating a nonprofit housing corporation tasked with building affordable housing that meets Green Building standards.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
Tyler Technologies
New York City School Construction Authority
Village of Glen Ellyn
Transportation Research & Education Center (TREC) at Portland State University
Chaddick Institute at DePaul University
Institute for Housing and Urban Development Studies (IHS)
Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada
Toledo-Lucas County Plan Commissions