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Stations rebranded to Great British Railways design / Rail Alphabet 2

py_megapixel

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At least it's not plain/boring... :lol: I was more talking about the interior signage.
Airport signage is deliberately designed for one purpose: readability. The large, plain-looking text, pictograms, and choices of colours are all designed to help with wayfinding in an environment that for some passengers can be extremely unfamiliar.
 
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GoneSouth

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Airport signage is deliberately designed for one purpose: readability. The large, plain-looking text, pictograms, and choices of colours are all designed to help with wayfinding in an environment that for some passengers can be extremely unfamiliar.
Totally agree, and this is precisely what railway signage should be doing.

On the other hand, most people won’t even need the platform sign to tell them which station they are at because the onboard announcement work perfectly (or maybe not ;))
 

Tio Terry

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Totally agree, and this is precisely what railway signage should be doing.

On the other hand, most people won’t even need the platform sign to tell them which station they are at because the onboard announcement work perfectly (or maybe not ;))
Assuming that you don’t have a disability that prevents you from hearing announcements.

All way finding information, both visual and audible, has to be designed to be easily used by PRM.
 

GoneSouth

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And a simple colour band at the top and/or bottom does not detract from that while making the place look much nicer.
Yup, I don’t have a problem either way as long as it’svery clear.

Another thing that struck me is lots of people talking about how the BR double arrow should be in red. Most stations I visit actually have a white double arrow on a red square background as a station entrance sign, so no consistency at all :s

Assuming that you don’t have a disability that prevents you from hearing announcements.

I did say most with that in mind
 

takno

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Totally agree, and this is precisely what railway signage should be doing.

On the other hand, most people won’t even need the platform sign to tell them which station they are at because the onboard announcement work perfectly (or maybe not ;))
That takes me back to early 2000s Poland. No announcements, mostly only one or two platform signs, often not lit, desperately counting stations and hoping. Ironically that trip was going back to Krakow Głowny as well, which should have been fine except that it was barely any better lit, and didn't have a lot more signage.

I learned a lot from that about not assuming that signage was mostly just there for decoration.
 

Peter Sarf

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Having recently sampled Kings Cross, Blackfriars and Victoria I can say hand on heart that a better way of improving the station environment so as to improve peoples perception of rail would be to avoid dark caves of stations.

Compare
St Pancras Eurostar, Kings Cross, Victoria Eastern side platforms and Maybe Blackfriars
With
Charing Cross, Victoria Western Side platforms, Waterloo platforms near barrier line and the Euston Concourse.

The later are all turned or turning into awful dingy caverns.

Whereas Kings Cross yesterday felt very nice as I got off the train.

The ambience of the station (basically a high ceiling) is far more important than tarted up signs (that get out of date).
 

185

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The simple, GBR branding had to happen, as silliness like this was getting out of hand...

Think before this recent advertiser, the previous one was an estate agent.


(credit, Trainline)
 

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NorthernSpirit

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Yup, I don’t have a problem either way as long as it’s very clear.

Another thing that struck me is lots of people talking about how the BR double arrow should be in red. Most stations I visit actually have a white double arrow on a red square background as a station entrance sign, so no consistency at all :s
You want to see the external entrance signage at Brockholes, there's no BR double arrows per-se- its simply a shruken platform totem with the double arrows in red in a white circle on a Serco Albellio blue on white sign with Northern on the bottom white band, prior to that it was simply a shruken version of the MetroTrain platform totem with no BR double arrow!

Its a bit better than the offering at Whitley Bridge, Hensall, Snaith, Rawcliffe, Ulleskelf and maybe one or two others where there is no BR double arrows at all.
 

Class 466

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I wonder if we’ll see a rollout to SE stations next year now that they’re also going OLR…
 

thomalex

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E_5hqCcVEAYh3Ah



RA2 going in at Euston
 

ARIC

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Food and drink is a new one, whatever happened to the usage of Refreshments?
I think it's a pretty out of date term for...well...food and drink. I much prefer straight-to-the-point and clear terms on signage.

I'm sure "Toilets" hasn't always been the term of choice too, but things move on, in this case I feel for the better.
 

jonnyfan

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As a general observation, the RA2 black text on white background is much easier to see in the dark, even though the font may not be as bold. The clarity is far better. Plus a lot of the Northern station signs were getting very worn so these updated ones give a far better and cleaner impression, and they are appearing across the Northern network at a rapid rate. A big thumbs up from me.
 

GoneSouth

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I think it's a pretty out of date term for...well...food and drink. I much prefer straight-to-the-point and clear terms on signage.

I'm sure "Toilets" hasn't always been the term of choice too, but things move on, in this case I feel for the better.
Have to agree, can’t remember the last time I needed refreshing but I know I feel hungry and thirst quite often. To be fair, the sign should read ‘Overpriced Poor Quality Food And Drink’ at most stations!

As for toilets, how many millennials knows what a WC is these days :D
 

BeijingDave

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Have to agree, can’t remember the last time I needed refreshing but I know I feel hungry and thirst quite often. To be fair, the sign should read ‘Overpriced Poor Quality Food And Drink’ at most stations!

As for toilets, how many millennials knows what a WC is these days :D
This is quite interesting actually, as a UK exile to China (hence the username), Chinese people of all ages right down to the young (post-millennial, whatever that is) use the term 'WC' when giving directions in English.

I assume it's down to using the same English language textbook and resources in schools for many generations, and not actually interacting very much with foreigners (except for those in perhaps Beijing or Shanghai).
 

HarryL

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Looks like a good excuse for Network Rail to have used some best practice from their own Wayfinding Guidance document?

https://www.networkrail.co.uk/wp-co...NR_GN_CIV_300_01_Wayfinding-Design-Module.pdf

View attachment 103350
The sign seems consistent with the guidelines by all accounts. It's not specified as one of the ones that needs it's own background or anything and there's no pictogram to denote no entry present in the document so doesn't need one of those. The sign is also an example of the perimeter ribbons from page 71 of the PDF.

It's not a particularly exciting example but it does the job its supposed to do. Nice to see the first example of RA2 going in down south.
 

Chiltern006

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maybe if the vapers are ex-smokers and don't want to be tempted back onto the fags? its also the fact that vape doesn't smell as bad as cigarette smoke so this is probably why
 

physics34

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maybe if the vapers are ex-smokers and don't want to be tempted back onto the fags? its also the fact that vape doesn't smell as bad as cigarette smoke so this is probably why
In a strange way, a random cloud of passion fruit smelling smoke is more bizarre and annoying than tobacco smoke loooooool
 

BeijingDave

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I don't see why so many have a problem with having vaping / smoking areas on stations when so many have open air areas where they can be put.
 

Meerkat

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Someone mentioned road signs……they all have borders don’t they, red round warning ones and white round the coloured ones?
These station signs don’t show up and are a scandalous waste of money when one of the reasons was that franchises waste money on needless signage changes.
As to saying a platform sign branding doesn’t change whether you get off at that station - it gives the feel of the product, and when you are next choosing between your nice comfy car and the memory of a stark, uncared for, rail product you will subconsciously remember.
 

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