v7.1

Sneak preview: Wide Stripes line style

Shannon Turner

Dec 13, 2024 — 2 min read

Map credit: adapted from https://metromapmaker.com/map/vSoB2IQM

My plan for version 7.1 is primarily focused on adding new styles. Today's post is inspired by maps like Cologne.

Cologne's S-Bahn (rail rapid transit, yellow) and Regionalbahn (regional transit, green) use wide striped lines

Some maps distinguish different modes of transit in their systems using different line styles; Cologne is a good example of this, where the S-Bahn and Regionalbahn use wide stripes to visually distinguish them from the tram/light railway systems (pictured here as line 1 in red).

Soon, you'll be able to use this style of lines in your maps too! Here's a preview of what the Wide Stripes line style will look like in Metro Map Maker, with a solid line at the bottom for comparison:

I hope you'll like the new line style, and look forward to seeing what you come up with once it's released.

Will you use this style for a different type of transit – a tram, bus, S-bahn, regional rail? Or maybe to show something's under construction? Maybe to show night or weekend service? Or something else entirely?

Map credit: adapted from https://metromapmaker.com/map/Z6BYQ8S1

Sneak preview: London station styles

Until version 6 of Metro Map Maker, there was only one station style available: the thick circles of Washington DC (and bullseyes for transfer stations). Version 6 added several new styles: * Rectangles, which are drawn as the line's color on thin lines and drawn as black and white

A screenshot showing six stations placed as close together as is possible on the green line.

Sneak preview: Move Stations

While watching a fun time-series video of someone creating a map in Metro Map Maker (here's another), I noticed something: the creator would sometimes draw some lines, add some stations, then after a bit more drawing, come back and erase the first lines and stations and re-add them

Map credit: https://metromapmaker.com/map/uAzeD2Gk

My Favorite Maps: Week of November 18, 2024

I really enjoy building new features for Metro Map Maker (and I have so many planned), but I think it's also really important to browse and highlight the maps that visitors like you have made. I've tried to do this from the beginning -- first in

1954 drawing by Andrew J. Campbell Jr., of a proposal for a four-track express subway in Washington

Metro Map Maker goes to the Library of Congress

Earlier this year I picked up a copy of Mark Ovenden's Transit Maps of the World. It's a delightful read and very fun to page through, and you're bound to find lots of inspiration for making your next map. In the section on Washington,

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Sneak preview: London station styles

Sneak preview: Move Stations

My Favorite Maps: Week of November 18, 2024

Metro Map Maker goes to the Library of Congress