I love transit maps! I get extremely excited when I see a well-designed information graphic, and transit maps are at the top of my list because of their crazy utility. It can't be easy to design just one image that effectively communicates so much inter-related information at the same time - where each train goes, what routes are available to get somewhere, how near each station is to where you're going, where you can get on or off, whether or not each line runs all day.As a blueprint for how people navigate through a city, a transit map also says something about that city's identity. When I travel to a new place, a well-designed transit map tells me whether or not the local government cares enough about its commuters to give structure to this crucial daily activity. This of course assumes that transportation systems work at all and were strategized properly so that they can now be communicated in an efficient way that allows even new users can easily get on board.
My favorite transit map is of New York, because it is New York's! But I like this map especially because it anchors the different transit points or subway stations over the actual city map so you know where each stop is, in relation to the whole city.
Then you can immediately tell things like how near or far each station is from the another. What options you have in terms of subway lines if you want to go to, say Midtown East or the Upper West Side.
Other maps like London's, Beijing's and I think even Tokyo's, are cleaner in terms of design. But because but elements are not anchored on an actual map you'd have to look at another (actual map) to figure out where you are once you leave the station.
