Legible London: mobilising the pedestrian

This chapter examines the design of the Legible London pedestrian wayfinding system. Overseen by Transport for London (TfL), this innovative scheme for enabling walking has developed from an early prototype study in 2007 to become a key part of transport policy in the UK’s capital city (AIG 2006, 2007; Arquati 2008; TfL 2014). An integrated combination of signs, pedestrian focused mapping and other directional information, Legible London has two complementary aims; to help people plan journeys on foot; and to give people the confidence to walk and explore. The scheme consists of a city-wide, consistent, pedestrian navigation system encompassing on-street wayfinding elements supported by identical information in public transport nodes (e.g. tube stations and bus stops) and paper based products as well as ongoing development of the provision of digital mapping information. The current on-street system is comprised of a mixture of information boards, known as ‘liths’ that come in a standardised range of sizes (see Figure 3.1), directional fingerposts, wall mounted signs and a range of supporting printed maps located in bus stops and inside tube stations. Information on all liths is presented in a hierarchical fashion: a top yellow beacon locates the sign in busy urban environments, directional information is given to nearby points of interest (replicating traditional finger signs), whilst differently scaled ‘planner’ and ‘finder’ maps locate the lith within 15 minute and 5 minute walk scales respectively. A street index also is provided.