They say that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery so we were extremely flattered to see Auckland Transport today start using the images below to advertise some of the benefits of the City Rail Link.
I guess my biggest criticism is I think the colours are too washed out and dull, they could do with being brighter. I’d also like to see a version showing the whole network in one image and versions showing some of the new trips more easily possible with the CRL e.g. Glen Innes to Newmarket. In showing some of those new options it would be good to include the NEX too to show some of the ways the project benefits the North Shore.
At the start I mentioned thatn this was an imitation of what we’ve done before. Below is the version we and Generation Zero created last year. We had planned to do the other lines too but haven’t for lack of time.
Overall well done AT and let’s hope they start putting more information out about how it benefits the whole region.
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Your colours are much more effective
Better late than never.
I like the TB/Gen Zero version better, I’m sure you would have let them use it if they’d asked.
Put in the theoretical frequency improvements as well.
For example BEFORE: 10 minutes peak frequency in Britomart
vs
AFTER: 3 minutes peak frequency (arbitrary number)
That’s a very good point, huge decrease in waiting times, especially where the lines overlap make enormous differences in real world travel times. And there will be three minute freqs iat the main city stations…
But the any frequency increase on the western line is dependant on finalising the Sarawia street crossing, personally I doubt this will happen before 2020……
Isnt construction on the Sarawia Bridge starting this calendar year?
Cowie St residents are fighting it and have engaged the services of Carrick Graham. It’ll probably go to court.
As said before – the Transport Blog/Gen Zero art is much better, but there was an attempt? So Yay?
The washed-out line colours of the AT version contravenes their brand usage guidelines.
Pretty piss poor attempt by AT. The “dull” before photos remind me of those weight loss/cosmetic surgery ads – the frumpy/sad blurry black and white “before” photo before and the smiling, colourful “after” photo all done to make you think the small difference is bigger than it is.
Here, the numbers speak for themselves, we don’t need that sort of crap and easily seen through visual trickery here AT, and we want bright colours in the before and after pictures and for both to be the same look.
Why not just use your version of the graphic?
AT have used the train line colours haven’t they – makes sense to me.
Yes, your “pain tolerance” colors are very effective. I think, though, that the lay reader could be confused by not having north at the top.
The times could be simplified. Just choose 3-4 key stations along each route and show the current/proposed from each key station. Current version is not simple to interpret due to the range of times throwing a lot of data out at once, but people can easily interpolate for their own station if you provide times from a few key stations along the route.
The walking time to Aotea is a bit tricky to notice. Under the current example readers have to take the train journey and add the foot journey to it? Great if you think the idea is to sit there and analyze… surely there is an easier way to incorporate the walking time.
How about, on the “current situation” map, under each of the key stations have a simple “time to Britomart xmin…. time to Aotea xmin” with the walking time included in the Aotea time. Then do the same on the “proposed” map.
Even I’m a road-building engineer and I want them to get it right.
Well… given that pre-partial electrification of trains and the December 8 timetable trains Papakura to Britomart used to be 50-55 minutes 95% of the time? I’m disappointed. CRL is just going to bring us back to where we were for the vast majority of last year?
As mentioned in previous comments, the big gain for south/east is increased capacity and reduced waiting time between trains (and better connections with the network effect).