Baltimore's New Bus System Comes With a Snazzy New Map

"Baltimore will soon be the latest American city to overhaul its bus network in an attempt to jumpstart ridership," reports Peter Dovak. "The plan, known as 'BaltimoreLink'," will go into effect on June 18. So far the best part is a really, really cool new map."

The Baltimore bus system reorganization follows the famous example of Houston, which reorganized its bus syetm in 2015 and is now one of the few systems in the country attracting on increased numbers of riders in recent years.

"The core of the BaltimoreLink plan is a dozen color-coded, high-frequency routes known as CityLink lines," explains Dovak. "They'll run 24 hours a day along Baltimore's downtown grid and then radiate out of the city in every direction, complimented by less frequent local and express lines."

A good portion of the article is devoted to the design of the Baltimore Link map, which a radial structure that allows for both a striking appearance and legible detail. A quick mention of the system re-structure's political origins—as a replacement for the aborted Red Line Subway project—is also included in the article.