please empty your brain below
There are similar signs around the City, but it took me a while when on unfamiliar ground near Liverpool street to realise that the map was orientated with North at the bottom... More of a challenge than a help, in that respect.

Waterhouse | 28.11.08 - 7:21 a.m. | #

I thought it was like deja-vu all over again, until I read it properly. Oh yeah, and searched, found and thought "That was exactly one year ago - could this be a new annual DG feature?"

dg writes: Apart from using the same photos, I tried ever so hard not to write the same things this year as last.

Ham | Homepage | 28.11.08 - 7:35 a.m. | #

They are only gas guzzlers because there is always a traffic jam. If it was allowed to flow freely there would be far less pollution. It's so noticeable when the lights break down, the traffic evaporates like snow on a summers day. And any time the traffic is worse you can be sure there is a policeman directing it.

Debster | Homepage | 28.11.08 - 7:36 a.m. | #

"the enamel surface looks positively lickable"

oh dear, too much beer, methinks.

Bina | 28.11.08 - 8:41 a.m. | #

Sounds good, but the cynic in me thinks "ah, this is Boris's latest wheeze to cut spending on public transport. If they can put up signposts showing how to walk from Ealing Broadway to Epping, there's no need for the Central Line to do that journey as well"

I realise this may be a slight exaggeration...

Venichka | 28.11.08 - 8:52 a.m. | #

Waterhouse, they are oriented so that they represent the view you see as you face the sign. The map on the other side will be the other way round.

Dave | Homepage | 28.11.08 - 9:08 a.m. | #

Debster, it may be true that traffic lights slow down traffic as possibly do policeman directing it. However it is generally accepted by traffic engineers that without these measure the accident rate climbs horrendously. People think of traffic lights as something intended to help the flow of trafic. Actually that is very often not true - it is a road safety measure and its consequence may well be to slow down the traffic. However traffic lights generally make it easier for pedestrians to cross the road which then makes it easier for them not to get into their cars in the first place for short journeys.

In a similar way zebra crossings don't make streets safer for pedestrians (the injuries to pedestrians are roughly the same whether the crossing is there or not). What they do do is help prevent people being isolated from nearly areas and make places more accessible to those travelling on foot.

Don't forget that even for motorists their journey may consist of a short walk at the end. "Door-to-door" by car is often a myth.

Pedantic of Purley | 28.11.08 - 10:00 a.m. | #

Stupid Boris Johnson and his not being a complete dipstick yet. It makes him difficult to resent. The only thing I can moan about is his getting rid of the bendy buses, and even that's not the end of the world...

Simon | Homepage | 28.11.08 - 10:21 a.m. | #

One of the things I noticed when I was in Japan is that every single public map I saw was the right way up relative to the viewer, rather than having north at the top. Solves the problem of working out which direction you need to walk in rather nicely.

Graham | Homepage | 28.11.08 - 11:11 a.m. | #

This isn't really a Boris project, apart from the fact he hasn't scrapped it. Legible London kicked off under Ken in 2005 and launched properly in 2007.

diamond geezer | Homepage | 28.11.08 - 12:39 p.m. | #

That is great! London, as a town of many scattered mini downtowns and shopping areas really needs those signs! They are really useful, especially for tourists!

John T. from Corfu, Greece | Homepage | 28.11.08 - 12:50 p.m. | #

"This isn't really a Boris project, apart from the fact he hasn't scrapped it. Legible London kicked off under Ken in 2005 and launched properly in 2007."

Good point - back to moaning I go.

Simon | Homepage | 28.11.08 - 1:10 p.m. | #

"And the quickest walking route from the London Eye to the Tate Modern isn't along the Thames, but who'd know that without decent maps?"

Sure but the inland route is nowhere near as nice as a Thameside stroll, which might be another reason that people stick to the river round there.

Kevinho | 28.11.08 - 1:49 p.m. | #

Belfast has recently introduced similar signage - I can see the point of it in the city centre, but I was a bit baffled to see that there's one quite near my dad's house; while the area is far from in the middle of nowhere, it's not exactly somewhere that people actually *go*, if that makes sense.

SimonC | Homepage | 28.11.08 - 2:11 p.m. | #

SimonC, maybe your dad is more famous than you realise.

trad or anon | 28.11.08 - 5:49 p.m. | #

edantic - in Holland they have started to take out traffic lights and found it was actually making the road safer as people had to slow down as they were not sure if they had right of way, and in some areas they are also taking out kerbs and blurring the distinction between the road and the pavement for the same reason.

Debster | Homepage | 28.11.08 - 7:10 p.m. | #

These are rather similar to the signs that have been up in Bristol for a few years now. The Bristol ones are also all over the city, but the city centre maps are at a much smaller scale than the ones further out.

Forest Pines | Homepage | 28.11.08 - 7:25 p.m. | #

"Signage". That'll be signs then? Whatever happed to good old signs.

Chris | 28.11.08 - 7:26 p.m. | #

> the quickest walking route from the London Eye to the Tate Modern isn't along the Thames

Especially when it's crowded. Perhaps some pedestrian traffic cameras could be installed and the walking times could be continually updated?

David Brake | Homepage | 28.11.08 - 8:41 p.m. | #

I walk around every city I go to, if I want to start to learn about it. I start by looking at a map and then try to keep track of the direction I'm going. These signs are much better than an upside-down map.

Z | Homepage | 28.11.08 - 9:10 p.m. | #

I think these signs are a great idea, particularly for tourists and those unfamiliar with the capital. I'm glad that good ol' BoJo's decided to roll them out further.

Just to add to the post, the South Bank doesn't have its own tube station, but Waterloo is only a minute or two's walk away, and the Circle line runs along the opposite side of the river. Of course, visitors won't necessarily know this without useful guides such as the Legible London maps. In addition, many people go to Covent Garden tube station as they don't know the way from Holborn, or even Leicester Square. These signs would help alleviate this problem.

Legible London - proof that the best ideas are often the simplest.

Andrewh | 28.11.08 - 9:36 p.m. | #

These new signs sound great, but aren't they going to put map sellers out of business? You can usually spot a tourist or an out of town Brit, by the paper map they are clutching.(Or in my case a print-out off Google-map).

Surrey Girl | 28.11.08 - 10:16 p.m. | #

Sounds great. From a visitor's POV, the best way to see a city is on foot, and I don't actually think it's a bad thing to reduce the number of stereotypical 'lost tourist clutching map' people, because they are also obvious targets for slightly dodgy sorts.

I've always found London a little confusing, because you can jump down one Tube rabbit hole and pop up another and have no idea where you are, or which way you're facing. I've a trusty A-Z which I lug about with me, and also a tiny compass on my backpack (hey, it's always good to know where North is). These signs will help too.

Rose | Homepage | 29.11.08 - 1:37 a.m. | #

This is a terrific idea, and they even got the names of the areas right (Fitzrovia YAY! Noho FECK OFF!). It's good to have a common standard for these across London as well.

darryl853 | Homepage | 29.11.08 - 2:02 p.m. | #

I'm intrigued by the pilot project out in Richmond. I took a long walk around that area last time I was in London, and there really isn't much in the way of guidance at present.

Josh | 02.12.08 - 3:57 p.m. | #

I'm guilty of being one of those tourists who rode instead of walking. Standing in front of Westminster Abbey, I decided the Royal Mews would be my next stop, so I trudged over to Westminster Station and took the Tube to Victoria Station. Never mind I had a cute little map tucked in my day bag. Things look very different at ground level. Later, of course, I figured out that I could've walked to the Mews in only a few minutes. Had there been "You are here" signs, I would've done so - and seen much more of London too!

JamaGenie | Homepage | 12.01.09 - 12:54 a.m. | #











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