Transit Lisboa

Lisbon’s interchanges were signed by four different operators over forty years. Visitors navigated by memory, locals by habit. We started by walking every route with a stopwatch.

Readable at walking speed

The system uses one typeface at three sizes, set in high-contrast panels that stay legible in harsh coastal light. Directions lead with the destination, not the line number.

Pictograms for seven hills

A new pictogram set accounts for the city’s topography: arrows that indicate stairs, lifts and slopes, so route choice depends on legs as well as lines.