Tubemap with a difference
Mapping seems to have become a cool activity these days. I’ve just found another fantastic map of London, obviously very much based on the famous Tube map.
Only difference – this one is for walkers.
Space Syntax is developing a pedestrian routemap for the city. It’s simple, colourful and vivid. Maybe it’s not completely up to showing all the lumps and bumps – like the Tube map it’s heavily simplified – but its ‘monuments route’, ’shopping route’, and ‘waterfront routes’ together with prominently labelled landsmarks make it great to use for your planning – how to get from A to B. Maybe you’ll then need an A to Z just to make sure you don’t go wrong!
I was surprised by some of the supporting data Space Syntax had found out. For instance, there are more women than men walking in London. And more non-tourists than tourists. Space Syntax specialises in modelling how people relate to their built environment, so the map has been built on the basis of what routes people are likely to choose – not what routes might be most interesting.
So their map isn’t a walking tour – you won’t go down interesting byways or find little cul-de-sacs with a surprise at the end. Rather, it’s just like the Tube map it copies – a handy guide to how to get from A to B, though you’ll be using your own feet rather than a train to do so.
Comments Off