Vila Nova de Gaia Urban Buses
Creating a fresh visual approach for Espiritos Santos, a public transport operator in Vila Nova de Gaia
December 2023
Proposal
The municipality of Vila Nova de Gaia is located south of the Douro River, on the opposite side from Porto. It is the third most populated municipality in the country, with about 300,000 inhabitants. Known for its Porto wine lodges, the Monastery of Serra do Pilar, the Monastery of Corpus Christi, beautiful beaches, and parks.
There are several operators providing public transportation services around the municipality. For this project, I selected Espirito Santos company, which operates most of the bus routes in the area.
The official map of their buses serves as an example of how not to design maps. Take a look or download it for a closer view through this link .
1. Information about bus lines is reliable and accurate, often accompanied by callouts to provide additional specific information
2. Each route is distinguished by its own color, making it relatively easy to differentiate each route in a cluster of other lines.
3. All the stops are unambiguously designated. There are special graphic distinctions for terminal stops.
But the number of weaknesses significantly surpasses the number of strengths. Let's take a look at this tiny segment and consider the design errors:
1. Inconsistent typography for objects within the same category.
2. Irregular style for the bus stops.
3. Unjustifiable use of capital letters.
4. Inconsistent spacing between lines.
5. Inconsistent rounding on the corners or the absence of rounding.
6. The leading in the names of bus stops is too large.
7. The proximity principle is violated: one text line is closer to other graphic objects than to the other text line in the same text field.
8. Poor alignment of the text relative to other graphic objects.
9. Lack of alignment between the arrows. Sometimes arrows within the lines are not centrally aligned.
2. Irregular style for the bus stops.
3. Unjustifiable use of capital letters.
4. Inconsistent spacing between lines.
5. Inconsistent rounding on the corners or the absence of rounding.
6. The leading in the names of bus stops is too large.
7. The proximity principle is violated: one text line is closer to other graphic objects than to the other text line in the same text field.
8. Poor alignment of the text relative to other graphic objects.
9. Lack of alignment between the arrows. Sometimes arrows within the lines are not centrally aligned.
10. Lamntable bifurcation of the lines. Some lines are excessively wavy without any specific reason.
11. Bus station overlays a place where a line makes an angle, it looks unpleasant.
12. The continuity of lines is disrupted. Sometimes, after the intersection, the arrangement of lines is altered.
13. Unjustifiable highlighting of this specific bus stop by the green color.
14. Zone frontiers and designations are very gross and overlay important information. The style of the line could be simplified.
15. Inconsistent spacing between bus stops and text information.
16. Incompetent use of the grid results in the fact that the lines are inclined at random degrees.
17. Icon style is irregular.
18. Bus stop figures are not centrally aligned to the bundle of lines.
11. Bus station overlays a place where a line makes an angle, it looks unpleasant.
12. The continuity of lines is disrupted. Sometimes, after the intersection, the arrangement of lines is altered.
13. Unjustifiable highlighting of this specific bus stop by the green color.
14. Zone frontiers and designations are very gross and overlay important information. The style of the line could be simplified.
15. Inconsistent spacing between bus stops and text information.
16. Incompetent use of the grid results in the fact that the lines are inclined at random degrees.
17. Icon style is irregular.
18. Bus stop figures are not centrally aligned to the bundle of lines.
In the new version of the map, I decided to employ a different approach in route visualization. Rather than adhering to the principle of “one route — one color”, I grouped routes with repetitive parts/directions. Instead of using 20 colors, as seen on the old map where some were similar, I opted for just six, ensuring they are distinctly contrasting.
The line width varies based on the number of bus routes passing through a specific stretch, adding dynamism to the design. Both train and metro lines share a consistent grey style, as they serve as secondary transportation modes.
I maintained a uniform style for all icons in the project for a cohesive appearance. Fare zones no longer have thick clumsy borders; instead, varying shades of grey are used to differentiate between zones.
For this project, I disregarded format or size restrictions, focusing solely on ensuring the map remains readable when printed yet as compact as possible. The final project measures 991x717 mm.
For this project, I disregarded format or size restrictions, focusing solely on ensuring the map remains readable when printed yet as compact as possible. The final project measures 991x717 mm.