New wayfinding signage for cyclists aims to point out faster routes for travelling across the UBC Vancouver campus.
In a recent survey, only 57% of cyclists reported that UBC is easy to navigate (compared to 79% of pedestrians). With this information in hand, Campus and Community Planning’s Transportation Team created new cyclist-specific wayfinding signage to give cyclists the information they need to choose faster routes on campus.
The aim of the signs and cycling map is to provide simple, consistent and reliable information on how to get around campus by bike with specific distances and direction.
“We’re hoping that wayfinding signs will make UBC easier to navigate, especially for cyclists to find routes to travel at speed on,” said Alex Taciuk, Bike Share & Active Transportation Coordinator for UBC Campus and Community Planning.
Newly installed cycling wayfinding signage marks major destinations on campus.
The signage was developed in collaboration with staff from the AMS Bike Kitchen, Building Operations, Brand and Marketing, UBC Psychology and UBC School of Community and Regional Planning faculty members.
Nine of the most popular on-campus landmarks are highlighted on the UBC cycling map including the Arts and Culture District, Ponderosa Commons and Thunderbird Park. Distances to these landmarks are calculated using the campus cycling network. The selected destinations on the signs are ordered by distance, with the closest one on top.
Click the image above to open a printable version of the map.
The wayfinding signage is designed to help cyclists avoid slow cycling zones and encourage them to instead choose faster cycling-priority routes. The signs are strategically placed along routes such as East Mall and West Mall, and areas with pedestrian priority such as Main Mall have been left out.
“The wayfinding signs are to help find routes where cyclists can travel at speed outside of the pedestrian areas. If you bike on campus you know how frustrating Main Mall can be during class changeover times,” said Taciuk.
Safety is a priority when it comes to cycling, which is why the signs are designed for legibility on the fly, at heights and font size that cyclists can read without taking too much of their attention from the road.
Learn more about cycling resources, including bike share on campus.