These Pedestrian Maps Are a Feat of Design, Data and Diligence

Within a week of moving to New York City, you gain a grasp of "the grid" — streets run east-west, avenues run north-south, and everything follows a pretty simple numerical system. That is, until you get below Houston or pop into another borough. New York is known as a walkable city, but many of the walkers quickly lose their bearings in its concrete jungle. In fact, 10% of New Yorkers are lost at any given time.

We spoke about New York's walkability with Michael Bierut, a partner at NYC-based design firm Pentagram who's been working with New York's Department of Transportation for two years. The DOT wants to improve urban mobility, and it partnered with Pentagram for the LOOK! campaign and to create the city's new signage that displays parking information in a much clearer, hierarchical way. The design consultancy's current DOT project is WalkNYC, a pedestrian wayfinding system. The project was inspired by London's wayfinding system, and it required the collaboration of several firms — Pentagram teamed up with Read more...