Wayfinding In Southamption
Southampton, or at least the parts I visited seems to have a comprehensive wayfinding system.
This web site shows the design, which is based on similar rules to London. A similar system will be rolled out all over Hampshire. The Hampshire web site says this.
The project team responsible for the signage is learning lessons from similar work elsewhere, including the recent Southampton legible cities project and the Legible London scheme.
So are we getting a de facto standard for wayfinding all over the country?
I hope so!
T
What Idiot Designed This Obstable Course?
I came across this awful set of street design, as I walked across Manchester.
It’s one of the most elderly and disabled-unfriendly pieces of street design I’ve seen in recent months. If I found out who designed it, I will send him a strong and alnost abusive letter, giving him a large piece of my mind.
An Unusual Way To Promote Road Safety
I like this story from the BBC. Here’s the first bit.
“Sexy” lollipop men and women are being used in a road safety campaign aimed at pedestrians who have been drinking.
The move is targeting young adults who are more likely to wander across roads while drunk.
A video, filmed in Oxford, appeared to show more pedestrians used a zebra crossing when accompanied by the scantily-dressed models.
I hope it works.
I remember in the 1960s, seeing a safety poster of two railway trucks with a space between them. The heading said.
Trespassers will be executed.
Sadly, in some parts of the world, this is the law.
Blackpool’s New Maps And Signs
I’ve criticised Blackpool in the past, as lacking maps and information. But they have at least got started on a visitor-friendly information system.
I think it is true to say, that most of the locals and visitors I talked to, said that the town had been getting better in the last couple of years.
These maps and signs should lead to fewer people getting lost.
But there were no signs pointing you to the trams at the station and the tram stops didn’t have any maps or even information about how you use the tram.
Across Manchester In The Sun
For one of the few times in my life in Manchester, it wasn’t raining, as I walked between Piccadilly and Victoria stations.
But it was still a trying walk, for someone whose eyesight isn’t the best, as it doesn’t seem to have the number of light-controlled crossings, that other cities have!
There were also no maps and only a few forlorn finger-posts.
Watch Your Step In Cardiff
The route from my hotel to the City Centre of Cardiff was like this for a lot of the way.
Watch Your Step In Cardiff
The lights that controlled the crossings weren’t good either.
No Cars At The School
There are two Primary Schools in my road; one State and the other Roman Catholic.
I walked past them yesterday just before nine and was surprised to see that there were no children being brought to either school in a car or taxi. There were lots of little scooters and many parents were dragging empty ones back home.
I wonder how few schools are the same as children turn up in the morning!
Searching For East Putney Station
East Putney station is the first station south of the Thames on the Wimbledon branch of the District Line and it lies within walking distance of the Carluccio’s. But finding it wasn’t easy, as there were no maps or signposts.
When I eventually got to the station I questioned the station man about this and he said it was all a devious plot. Or something like that!
Note that the railway I crossed over is the line between Waterloo and Richmond.
East Putney station is a curious station in that it effectively lies within the junction of two lines, although no passenger services run on the other track.
Searching For The Kelpies
On my visit to the Commonwealth Games, I had to travel back to Glasgow, so I thought I’d go via Falkirk and see the Kelpies. On looking it up before I left London, I found that the web site was rather vague This is what it said.
From Edinburgh to Falkirk High (25 minutes) or Falkirk Grahamston (35 minutes)
From Glasgow Queen Street to Falkirk High (20 minutes) or Falkirk Grahamston (50 minutes)
From Stirling to Falkirk Grahamston (15 minutes)
From London direct to Falkirk Grahamston (5 hours) or change at Edinburgh or Glasgow
There are also services to Polmont Station, Larbert Station and Camelon Station.
It mentions several stations but which one is the nearest?
On the way up Princes Street, I got talking to a young lady and by chance, she said she’d been and had taken the train to Falkirk Grahamston station and then walked.
I though I’d check in the Tourist Office at Waverley Station and they said to go to Falkirk High station.
As I’d got one vote for each Falkirk station, I decided to ask a Scotrail Customer Service Agent. He gave me exactly the same story as the young lady, so I went to Falkirk Grahamston.
I took these pictures at Falkirk.
You will notice that none show any information on how to get to the Kelpies. One does show a distant picture of the Kelpies (?) from the train as I approached.
So in the end I walked back to the station and got another train to Glasgow.
Give Falkirk this, they have got the station name in Gaelic and two good maps, even if neither shows the Kelpies or the Falkirk Wheel.
This Icelandic Crossing Has A Secret Button
As I can’t drive because I have a slight eyesight problem to the left, I always look to see how the countries I visit cater for the blind at road crossings. In the UK, we increasingly find secret buttons under the controls, as described here on the BBC web site.
I must admit that I was surprised to find this crossing control in Iceland.
This Icelandic Crossing Has A Secret Button
It certainly is a little development, that I’d like to see everywhere.
The Anonymous Widower 