In late August, the Spacing Wire reported on the wonderful website iPod Subway Maps. Designer William Bright created images of 12 cities’ subway maps so you can download them on to your iPod for display (seems there is a neat function on the big iPods that is similar to desktop wallpaper designs). Sadly, the tall foreheads at New York’s and San Francisco’s transit authorities want him to stop distributing these images. He has received cease-and-desist letters, or in NYC’s case, they are willing to lisence the map to him for $500. Somehow I don’t think these maps are cutting into the revenue streams of either public transit system. If you go to the site, make sure to check out the Comments section in the NYC update — most people are aghast at the reaction from the transit systems.
We at Spacing find this rather humourous since no one at the TTC has even taken the time to conact us about our subway station button collection. Just for the record, we have sold over 25,000 buttons since January 2005.