BART, Use This Map
Don’t get me wrong, I like my reductio ad absurdum BART map (and if I may say so myself it looks quite good on a black t-shirt). But it was a parody, designed to highlight the half-assed job BART did on its new map with its awkward combination of forced straight lines yet strangely detailed coastline. (And let’s face it, the previous map, even with its Mission curve, wasn’t very good either.)
Behold our friends at San Francisco Cityscape who have just updated what is quite possibly the BEST TRANSIT MAP EVER – zoom of SF below, click the map for the entire Bay Area.
“…we’d like to think that this version combines the simplicity of the BART map with a relatively accurate rendering of geography, and it includes some detail that the BART map doesn’t, like major Muni stops.”
Indeed. I would be very comfortable giving this to anyone visiting from out of town, and would pray that such a map existed wherever I travel.
BART, at least consider replacing the maps inside the cars with this one.
If one didn’t know any better, this SF Cityscape map would make you think the Bay Area has a coherent transit system.
The SF Cityscape folks have created dozens of interesting maps. I particularly like the SF Main Line map, the Spider Map and a plan for the California High Speed Rail map of the hopefully near future (rotated for your viewing pleasure).
Oh, I am so looking forward to the bar car on the trip to LA zipping along at 220 mph.
Hey, here’s an idea – if you have an electric car, you can drive onto the train. You get a charge and you can drive you get there! This idea is of course void if LA were ever to build a subway system like the one below (by Numan Parada, read more about it in the LA Times story).
I swear I will write about something other than BART or Sutro Tower soon. Really.
Burrito Justice 
I love that map, but it’s got problems. It overemphasizes the usefulness of MUNI. Throw in a few random breaks. Hell, maybe just dotted lines. And toss in a scary looking bum gnawing on the T line and you’re there.
Between the BART/Muni combo map and the Muni mainline map you can definitely tell where not to live.
What is the red line running parallel to the T-Third that looks like a Bart line? That doesn’t exist. Or am I just confused by this rendering?
Also, come on commenters, why is everyone so hard on the T? There are bums all over Muni. In fact, I’d say the T has some of the cleanest, friendliest riders on the system.
Oh! Caltrain! Oops, I see.
Living in London I found SF’s bus maps to be pretty terrible compared to the simple spider maps provided at London bus stops. The spider map by SF City Scape is totally awesome and should be implemented immediately along with the BART map.
This was my idea for a Muni pane in a bus stop.