Tube map design.

Earlier in the week my Father gave me these old school tube maps, he works for the print company Colour Five and recently got a job in from The London Transport musuem, who wanted to re-print some of these old bad boys. They're fascinating. The way the London Underground has evolved in terms of its network and design is pretty impressive with each map becoming more and more concise. I like to think that this reflects attitudes towards design, communicating ideas and messages efficiently as well as being coupled along with modernism at the time. Intriguing that the first two are very accurate in terms of London geography and they look like they've been hand drawn. Obviously the most modern tube map isn't to scale or accurate but designed merely to be clear and easy to understand, essential information design.

The covers are quite interesting too, some having maps of areas, lists of theatres and places of interests. In contrast to more recent times it's very different as I remember my favourite illustrator David Shrigley designing the cover a couple of years ago.

Some other interesting points are that the tube lines weren't always the same colour as we know them today, Central line used to be blue then changed to orange before the red it is today and Bakerloo line was a fabulous pink. The main thing I quite liked was the now abandoned and closed down stations that are shown, including: Uxbridge Road Station (which was between Shepherds Bush and Holland Park), Post Office Station, Addison Road Station and Praed Street Station to name a few.

If you like information design like me, this is the jazz right here:

Clickity click for a closer look.

 Issued 1908

Issued 1926

Issued 1933

 Issued 1938

Issued 1949