Wayfinding and identity signs
Wayfinding and identify signs have become essential components of major cities, towns and regions for both drivers and pedestrians. While they have proven popular for local branding, making spaces more livable and promoting tourism, however, there are still questions about their importance and worthiness as an investment today, particularly in light of mobile navigation technologies. So, the goal of the Philadelphia survey was to measure the relative importance of wayfinding in comparison to other streetscape and landmark investments.
There has been very little research in the past into the effectiveness of wayfinding programs, particularly in relation to their cost. It is important to focus on wayfinding as one of a number of infrastructural investments that support an urban brand, including street lighting. A wayfinding project must begin with the premise that cities and towns are looking for the most effective investments to enhance their identities.
The Philadelphia survey built on earlier, ground-breaking research developed by Applied Information Group for Vancouver and London, England, which studied how an effective wayfinding system can lead to greater commerce by enhancing a city’s walkability and, thus, the public’s access to the urban environment. Augmenting that analysis, the Signage Foundation’s study compared wayfinding to building lighting, street lighting, landmarks, public art, murals and interpretive signs. It also analyzed several wayfinding approaches, including pedestrian, vehicular, gateway and mobile applications.
Digital signage integrated into larger landmark signs, like this example in Innisfil, Ont., tends to draw a positive response from the public.
Lighting, public art and murals scored high, at 4.04 to 4.05 out of five, closely followed by wayfinding signs (3.95), landmarks (3.77) and interpretive signs (3.72). Gateway identity signs scored 4.12, followed by vehicular wayfinding (3.91), pedestrian wayfinding (3.83) and mobile applications (3.82). Interestingly, most of the survey participants had downloaded a city or transit map onto their mobile phones, but only used resources they were very familiar with, like Google Maps.
The survey showed attitudes toward urban infrastructure projects are very positive. Indeed, the biggest issue that came out from the focus group at the end of testing was the need for many wayfinding sign design features found in larger cities to be extended to smaller cities, towns and neighbourhoods.
Directional signs, maps and kiosks were all seen as extremely important investments, particularly when integrated into street furniture like bus shelters and benches, while gateway signs were seen as crucial to success at the vehicular level. Murals and public art were seen as ‘creative landmarks’ for a strong community identity and as an important complement to wayfinding signs.
The more negative responses were to approaches that would add clutter to the environment, including the extensive use of banners or too many small signs as key elements. Fewer but higher-quality elements were perceived as more successful in reinforcing the urban identity.
What makes signs successful
The Signage Foundation’s new research emphasizes how design issues can be judged objectively, with general consensus among a public population, by asking survey participants to rank design attributes like legibility (which involves contrast levels, typography, letter size and the use of negative space), clarity of information, reduction of clutter and architectural integration before comparing real-world signage approaches. Another major finding was there is no difference to the public between a sign and a building, in terms of how well-accepted they are as parts of the urban landscape.
The next question is whether or not a sign code can cover all of these issues properly. People respond positively to good design in commercial signage, which should give planners some ammunition in the sign bylaw arena. There are design truths that are not just subjective.
Craig Berger is chair of the visual presentation and exhibition design department of the Fashion Institute of Technology’s (FIT’s) School of Art and Design. This article is based on research efforts he has led for the Signage Foundation. For more information, visit www.thesignagefoundation.org.
