Design and culture

What is design and culture?

Design and cultural actions are major tools used by operators to appeal to passengers and create a positive and shareable experience. ‘Design and architecture’ refers to major projects on a long-term basis with a standard character. ‘Culture and art’ refers to short-term operations with major media coverage and the possibility to be renewed.

Developments and trends

As our lives become more and more frenetic and travel is now an everyday part of our daily habits, the time that is spent moving needs to be enjoyable. Today there is an unequivocal link between quality of life and mobility, and there is more to traveling on public transport than just having a ticket to ride on a vehicle that will take us nearer to our desired destination. The emotional aspect is as important as the operational aspect to consolidate the relationship between the operator and its customers. Public transport professionals, therefore, need to ensure that the whole journey experience is a positive one.

How to make this happen is not so easy and it means looking carefully at all the environments and space customers use in every part of their journey. This includes ticketing, the design of the actual vehicles, the buildings and infrastructure and many other aspects of a public transport network. Customer satisfaction and the enjoyment of using the services offered increases with better designed stations, comfortable waiting areas, clear signage and passenger information. It has been shown that customer satisfaction can be further increased with the addition of public works of art, cultural and community actions and other installations that increase the interest and the quality of the space and the journey experience.

See the UITP Design and Culture Platform

Read more

‘Security-By-Design’ by Yellowdesign Foundation in cooperation with UITP. Executive Summary (PDF format) Design Guidelines to reduce feelings of insecurity in transit zones of intermodal stations of urban public transport. January 2008.
Design is not a frill
Moving the Boundaries of Art

FACT SHEETS:

	-	How design can be used to improve the functionality of buses and make them more attractive to all users
	-	Art on Transport	- - -
	-	The Design Process	- - -
	-	Public Transport Theatres of Culture	- - -
	-	Corporate Design as part of a corporate identify strategy	- - -

4th Design Day Sustainable design for sustainable cities! 17-18 December 2008, Paris, France

UITP Design and Culture Platform

List of members   Information for members

Introduction

UITP brings together all types of actors who are actively working in their field in the Design and Culture Platform. Operators and engineers benefit from having a better understanding of how architects, designers and artists address the issue of bringing transport closer to the customers needs and vice versa.

The current Chairperson is Alain Flausch, Société des Transports Intercommunaux de Bruxelles (STIB), Belgium.

CONTACT: Sandra Vingerhoets, sandra.vingerhoets@uitp.org

List of members

See the list of members