The design is based on Standard Bold (the english name for Akzidenz Grotesk) but with a lower uppercase and shortened ascenders and descenders, the typical characteristics of a signage typeface. Image kindly provided by the Letterform ArchiveĪnother interesting example is the London Airport Lettering signage typeface Matthew Carter drew for Colin Forbes’ sign system for the No. LONDON AIRPORT LETTERING featured in the magazine Typographica 5 in June 1962.
To find an example that was designed with little consideration for space and legibility in traffic sparked my curiosity for further searches. The typeface seemed to go against all conventions, was geometrically constructed with no optical compensations and quite brutal in nature but nevertheless charming and wonderfully naive in its approach. It was originally designed by Marek Sigmund in 1975 for the Ministry of Transportation. It all started for me when I saw a sample of the typeface Polskie Pismo Drogowe used in Polish road signage. Image taken by Kuba Sowiński and kindly provided by Marian Misiak POLSKIE PISMO DROGOWE as seen in Marek Sigmund’s manual.
Nonetheless there are plenty of peculiar typefaces and letterforms to be found in this field. These design limitations produced purposeful formal solutions with a unique aesthetic and characteristic attributes. While starting my research I was especially interested in the custom tailored typographic solutions used to fulfill the requirements of this very specific environment under the clearly defined conditions of road and public transport signage. While building on this foundation it incorporates the distinctive characteristics of a highly specialized genre to become a versatile grotesque with a balanced geometrical touch.
Frontpage made with Lay Theme RT Rondelle RT Rondelle is the result of an exploration into public transport signage typefaces.
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