Bristol Legible City

Bristol Legible City is a unique concept to improve people’s understanding and experience of the city through the implementation of identity, information and transportation projects. It was published by Bristol City Council and its partners in June 1999.

• “Its a unique concept that takes into account the needs of the user at every step - whether its a tourist trying to find a hotel, someone with a business appointment to keep, a film-goer on their way to the conema, a cyclist going to the shops, an occasional ferry user or a parent whose kids need to go to the toilet in a hurry.”
• “Bristol Legible City includes directional signs, visitor welcome panels, city and area maps, interpretation points providing details about a locality and its attractions, an integrated network of transport information, an arts program, telephone kiosks, information booths, and markers at transport interchanges and neighbourhood gateways. Forward-looking and user-friendly, Bristol Legible City is devised specifically to meet your needs in the new millennium.”
• “Clear, easily understood information helps make cities tick. With major regeneration schemes now transforming the centre of Brostol, a new sign and information system is needed to enable visitors and residents to make the most of the city and all it has to offer.”
• “Its all about making Bristol a better place to live, work and travel in, to visit and enjoy, a showcase city.”
• “The typeface - ‘Bristol Transit’ - is clear and easy to read, designed to look modern and confident. It uses upper and lower case letterforms because these are the easiest, most natural to read, while the light-on-dark contrast has been chosen for maximum clarity, helping all, including those who are visually impaired.”
• “Bristol Legible City uses only icons that are widely recognized and immediately understood. Providing instant visual messages, they are key elements of a sign system that will grow into a network of information linking different modes of transport in the city.”
• “Bristol Legible City is a blueprint for making the city a better place to live, work and visit, a means of giving the city the strong identity that is vital for its long-term prosperity.”

These quotes were taken from the booklet that accompanies the design of Bristol Legibe City, they also have a website: www.bristollegiblecity.info/index.html