Winnipeg is one of three cities where Informing Design had the opportunity to develop a complete city solution: traffic signing as well as pedestrian maps and signing.
Downtown Traffic Wayfinding System
The firm developed an off-kilter curved-top wayfinding sign to complement the existing (off-kilter) modernist city logo which is displayed in the top portion of the sign. A natural loop within Downtown was highlighted including Portage, Main and Broadway, a loop that is actually the nexus of highways Province-wide. Signed routings in both directions along this loop are able to guide motorists to parking for all important civic and shopping destinations in Downtown. In fact, a single street in the middle of the loop turned out to be a “secret” route to most of the Parkades in the center of Downtown.
Client: Property Planning and Development, City of Winnipeg
Time Frame: 2003 – 2006, currently in use
The “W” Interior Walkway Sign and Map System
Like other major Canadian Cities (with the obvious exception of mild weather Vancouver), Winnipeg’s Downtown features an interior walkway system that interconnects most major buildings. And like the other systems in Canada, finding your way through these interior mazes can be challenging. The firm’s solution was to map the hallways as though they were a subway system, treating major entrances as the “stations.” A 3-D model of Downtown was created and used as a base for system maps placed throughout the network of hallways. For the full story, see the “Enjoying Blind Man’s Bluff at 40 below” case study.
Client: Property Planning and Development, City of Winnipeg
Time Frame: 2003 - 2006, currently in use
Pedestrian Map Kiosk System
The firm also deployed pedestrian map kiosks on outside sidewalks throughout Downtown, all based on the 3-D model which was developed.
Client: Property Planning and Development, City of Winnipeg
Time Frame: 2003 - 2006, currently in use
Visitor Maps
One of the by-products of this system was a series of Visitor Maps which Tourism Winnipeg uses in its publications as well as online and in print form. The firm keeps these maps up-to-date, with major revisions every other year and minor revisions in between.
Client: Tourism Winnipeg
Time Frame: 2003 – Present (not including a few years break in the middle of that time period