Toronto Union Station Revitalization | ?m | ?s | City of Toronto | NORR

Thanks nfitz — that works great!

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tnarduzzi said:
It wouldn't happen to be this post (http://urbantoronto.ca/forum/thread...city-of-to-u-c-norr.4308/page-116#post-994920) would it?
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Yes, yes, it is.

concoursesuggestion-jpg.45337
 
I really like the detail of the new sign brackets/mounts. The square relief around the perimeter and in the corner really plays into the architectural details of the station. For this reason I would shy away from options B, C & D as I believe they undermine this small but important design detail. While improving the wayfinding; the diagonal, the rounded, and the white border do not necessarily play into the design details of the station as a whole.

Can I suggest a mock up based on option A whereby all vertical elements "or lines" are removed except where they divide directions. Additionally if the proper logos were used to replace text this would allow uniform widths and spacings. Ie. Replace "Air Canada Center" text with logo of same dimensions as TTC logo.

Something like this perhaps?
union_signage_concept.jpg


All aesthetics aside, in terms of straight-up "wayfinding function", I think option C is the best bet but could definitely use some interface tweaking. The way Union/Metrolinx have chosen to display the platform numbers is just outright silly.
 

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tnarduzzi said:
Something like this perhaps?
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There is a lot of room for variation what constitutes a successful design. For example, there is no one correct font. I suspect that there's room for further improvement if we're not limiting ourselves to reusing existing design elements.

Having said that, I think you've absolutely nailed the core usability issues. The extraneous white lines and the inconsistent handling of the platform number segments are easily the biggest issues, and with those resolved, it's so much clearer.
 
tnarduzzi said:
I really like the detail of the new sign brackets/mounts. The square relief around the perimeter and in the corner really plays into the architectural details of the station. For this reason I would shy away from options B, C & D as I believe they undermine this small but important design detail. While improving the wayfinding; the diagonal, the rounded, and the white border do not necessarily play into the design details of the station as a whole.

Can I suggest a mock up based on option A whereby all vertical elements "or lines" are removed except where they divide directions. Additionally if the proper logos were used to replace text this would allow uniform widths and spacings. Ie. Replace "Air Canada Center" text with logo of same dimensions as TTC logo.

Something like this perhaps?
View attachment 53996

All aesthetics aside, in terms of straight-up "wayfinding function", I think option C is the best bet but could definitely use some interface tweaking. The way Union/Metrolinx have chosen to display the platform numbers is just outright silly.
Click to expand...

I like your version, but I think you still have to write out Air Canada Centre for those game night travelers who are looking for those magic words. They won't necessarily recognize the ACC logo without it being spelled out. I've encountered many people coming through the station from the subway looking for the ACC, so making it easier to see on the signs is critical. Major destinations like the ACC, Ripley's Aquarium, SkyDome (aka Cable/Phone co. Centre), and CN Tower should have prominent wayfinding signs, and not be shoe-horned into these station navigation signs. The signs should be in clear and consistent fonts, with arrows, like the signs used on subway station walls. Those temporary signs with all the logos and odd fonts jammed into a square sign are examples of what not to do. People looking for these places aren't generally regular commuters and need easy to follow signage.
 
AlbertHWagstaff said:
People looking for these places aren't generally regular commuters and need easy to follow signage.
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I think that's something that can also be shown with the signs that went up for the Pan Am games.
18998006280_7ccd5988a3_z_d.jpg

Instead of using something easy for everyone to understand they came up with acronyms for everything that nobody knew what they were without looking them up on the Pan am site first and then they had signs like this one pointing people different directions to the same location.
 
Or looking at their tickets. I've heard a lot of complaints from transport fanatics about the 3-letter abbreviations. I heard nothing from those trying to get to/from venues.
 
Yup, the signs (and abbreviations) matched the tickets, volunteer and athlete passes so it made sense to ticket holders, athletes and volunteers.
 
PinkLucy said:
Yup, the signs (and abbreviations) matched the tickets so it made sense to ticket holders.
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We didn't even hear reports of buses with athletes getting lost, like they did in London. Given a lot of drivers were from out-of-town, I expect much of their signage was for their benefit!
 
The Pan-Am signs make total sense. Like nfitz says, the only people complaining were the ones not actually going to events. The 3-letter abbrevation was literally right on the ticket where it said venue.
 
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