Digital screens in or around MBTA transit facilities provide riders with the information they need while traveling on the T, including real-time predictions and timely service notifications. Between trip planning tools available on the web, and physical wayfinding signs in the real world, dynamic digital communications help customers navigate our public transit system. This design system sets the standards for adaptive design as it relates to existing materials, and unifies dynamic communications across various technologies.
In March 2019, the MBTA released its long-term planning document, Focus40, which lays out guiding priorities for capital spending in 12 program areas, including digital signage within the customer experience program.
As of early 2019, the Customer Technology Department (CTD) was already piloting solar-powered electronic ink (E Ink) signs on the Green Line. To ensure the cohesion, accessibility, and inclusivity of digital signage throughout the system, CTD received a grant to begin an initiative focused on screens throughout the system. Several other departments signed off as stakeholders on that grant, including Customer Experience, Systemwide Accessibility, and Wayfinding.
This design system, a product of a year’s worth of research and design by CTD, is a deliverable on that grant.
In general, design systems help:
Because of the recent proliferation of digital signage across the MBTA, this design system will help us design and develop many kinds of digital content for many types of screens for all of our riders.
This design system is not intended to supersede: