Rochester Rail System Design System

Graphic image of the system map of the Rochester Transit System. The map contains 9 lines in 9 different colors. The lines go as far north as Lake Ontario, to as far south as RIT and Nazareth College, to as far West as Rochester's Tech Park in Gates, to a possible future expansion out to Webster.

For my senior capstone project, I imagined a fictional light rail system in Rochester called the Rochester Rail System that transports passengers within, and in and out of Rochester. While Rochester once had a trolley and subway stem, the city and surrounding areas have become heavily car dependent, and the bus system isn’t the greatest in the area.

This light rail system is designed to help people who may utilize the system the most by focusing on lines that goes through areas of high poverty, as well as other areas such as colleges and universities, and high retail/employment areas such as Henrietta and Rochester Tech Park. This capstone features a system map, line map, wayfinding signage, ticket machine screen, transit card, and a long-term PSA announcement.

Research and Development

Initial Research

Map showcasing poverty within the city of Rochester boundaries, represented in shades of red. The darker the red, the more poverty there is, with it higher around Downtown Rochester.
Poverty map of Rochester, NY. These areas would be my system's main focus.
Image of a sketchbook spread featuring notes and charts about [Rochester] Regional Transit Service ridership.
Some notes from an RTS report about ridership.
Image of a Sketchbook drawing of Pittsburgh's Rail System showing the lines, stations, and rivers. Anything else that seemed interesting such as the Fare Free Zone in the downtown area were also noted.
Pittsburgh Rail System visualized.
Graphic image of San Diego's trolley system featuring clean, colorful lines. The image also shows service information and policies.
San Diego trolley system

Buffalo Research

I traveled to Buffalo as not only do they have a light rail system, but Buffalo as a whole is similar to Rochester. I rode on their system and took some notes on what I liked about the system (such as it being fully handicap accessible), and what I didn’t like about the system (such as no Apple Wallet support).

Image of a Buffalo Light Rail Station under construction and fenced off.
Station under construction during my visit in November, 2023.
Image of a red station on Buffalo's Light Rail System. The station name's is Merchants Station and it has an handicap ramp towards the front of the station on the second track from the image.
Overview of a station in Buffalo. The Buffalo Light Rail System is fully handicap accessible, making it a good base for this project.
Image of the map and information of the Buffalo Light Rail System with the overall design ascetics feeling like it's from the early 90s, even though it was made in the 2020s due to a Face Mask on the panel. Timetables are also shown on the bottom of the map.
Map and system information. The map does it's job, but it feels stuck in the late 90s. I wouldn't have known this was a modern poster if it wasn't for the "FACE MASK REQUIRED" message on it.
Image of the University Sign at University Station on the Buffalo Metro, as part of their Light Rail System.
Buffalo Station Signage (underground)
Image of two kiosks for purchasing transit cards mounted on the wall of a station.
Kiosk stations for transit cards.
Close up image of a station sign titled "Church Street Station." Braille is written on the bottom of the text.
Small station signage with braille on it. However, it looks kind of worn out.
Photograph of the inside of Buffalo's Metro cars with blue seats and advertising on the ceiling of the cars. A person is sitting up front, facing away from the camera.
Interior of a car.
Image of notes that I took during my ride on Buffalo's Light Rail System. Some notes include station closures during my visit, no Apple Wallet Support, and 15 seconds of boarding.
Notes that I took during my adventure on the system.

Overall, while a small system, I thought it does the job, but it would be a good base for a light rail system in Rochester. The finalized mockups used for this project do come from Buffalo’s Light Rail System.

Development

Image of a sketchbook spread with various ideas sketched for branding elements for the Rochester Rail System form the logo, to signage.
Sketches of the overall design of some branding elements
Image of a sketchbook page showing sketches for the Rochester Rail System transit card designs.
Sketches of Transit Card
Graphic image of rough logos for the Rochester Rail System, all in black surrounded by a black box. They all contain the letter R in some capacity.
Some logo designs, including Station markings, similar to Boston's T system (this idea would later be abandoned).
Graphic image of line colors and arrow styles for the Rochester Rail System. There is a total of six colors used and the arrows point at various directions in different styles.
Some line and arrow ideas I tried and experimented.
Graphic image of Rochester Rail System station signage, with the station name on all of them saying "Dutchtown." The signage is mostly green, but some experiments were done with a station serving multiple lines with multiple colors.
Early wayfinding station signage
Grapic image of Rochester Rail System signs that would be placed along sidewalks to guide people how far away stations are away. The placement of the logo, and station name varies.
Early signage that would appear to guide people to stations
Graphic image of a map with a draft of where the Rochester Rail Lines would go.
First rough idea for the map layout. The red shaded areas represents the area in Rochester with a high poverty rate.
Graphic image of a map with a draft of where the Rochester Rail Lines would go.
Updated map with an attempt to the lines more connected to each other while branching out at the same time.
Graphic image of the Rochester Rail System map in a early stage with all lines either horizontal, vertical, or at a 45 degree angle.
Early designed map, with all directions going vertical, horizontal, or a 45 degree angle.
Graphic image of the Rochester Rail System map in an early stage with adjusted line angles to fix over crowding, and a fix attempt for Downtown Rochester's station crowding.
Updated map design from the previous image. In this version, the Orange Line's code was changed from "O" to "U" due to concerns it would've been mixed up with zero. I also made it so some line directions turn at an angle that's divisible by 30 degrees.

Final Versions

Graphic image of the system map of the Rochester Transit System. The map contains 9 lines in 9 different colors. The lines go as far north as Lake Ontario, to as far south as RIT and Nazareth College, to as far West as Rochester's Tech Park in Gates, to a possible future expansion out to Webster.
Final system map design.
Mockup image the of three Rochester Rail System maps on display at a station. One map is the full transit map, while the two other maps are individual maps for the B-Line and V-Line by themselves.
Mockup of a Rochester Rail System map, and line map in use.
Mockup image of a Rochester Rail System sign informing users on the sidewalk where the nearest stations are. One station is a 3 minute walk away to the right, and the other being a six minute walk ahead.
One example of a signage telling people where the nearest station is, and how far at a standard walking pace.
Mockup image of a Rochester Rail System sign on the sidewalk informing users where the nearest stations are. They are all straight ahead with one being a two minute walk, and two others being a 6 minute walk.
One example of a signage telling people where the nearest station is, and how far at a standard walking pace.
Mockup of a Rochester Rail System PSA ad. The ad in a blue background says "Holding the closing doors delays everyone. Help keep the train and everyone on schedule."
Example of a long term PSA. This can also be used for ad space.
Mockup image of a Rochester Rail System station, with the station being Washington Square Station. There is an handicap ramp at the front of the station and the station name appearing under the roof of the station.
Example of a Rochester Rail System station.
Mockup image of two Rochester Rail System transit cards. One is a typical card, while another one is a 3-Day pass.
Transit Card. Instead of swiping, you tap to pay your fares, and can also support digital wallets such as Apple Wallet.
Mockup image of a Rochester Rail System kiosk for transit cards showing the welcome screen UI with a button for Spanish.
Station kiosk for new transit cards, or to refuel for fare balance.

Project on Display

Photograph of the Rochester Rail System poster that was showcased during the Senior Capstone Show featuring the maps, detail, and mockups.
Project on Display during RIT Zenith - Graphic Design Capstone 2024 Showcase
Photograph of the Rochester Rail System project on display before Imagine RIT featuring the poster, maps, and a yellow signal light featuring an Railroad crossing ahead sign.
Project on display during Imagine RIT 2024.

What people have said about this project

  • OH MY GOD! We absolutely need this!!!
  • This map is so well designed, it looks like something that exists in real life.
  • I would totally ride on this system if it were to exist in real life.