Morrison – PUBLIC TRANSPORT MAPS IN WESTERN EUROPEAN CITIES 1996

Description

Authored by Alastair Morrison from the University of Glasgow and published in The Cartographic Journal (Vol. 33, No. 2, December 1996), this 18-page research paper provides a seminal analysis of public transport map design. Based on extensive 1995 fieldwork across 25 cities in 11 Western European countries, it combines direct map study with insights from interviews with transport officials. The study meticulously identifies distinct “French,” “Scandinavian,” “Dutch,” and “Classic” map styles, offering practical guidelines for their application and discussing the suitability of schematic maps for different transport modes. Illustrated with 18 figures of diverse urban transport maps, this empirically grounded document also explores the future of map generation, including novel “stop-specific” and “octopus” map types, highlighting the role of GIS. It remains a valuable, trustworthy resource for cartographers and urban planners seeking to optimize public transport information design.