Travel Through Time with TfL and Exterion Media

Imagine a day without using the tube. The train. A bus, your bike or even… the tram.

It goes without saying that transport has long played a huge part in a typical Londoner’s daily life.

Take the iconic three door Routemaster which has graced London’s streets since the 1950s. While it disappeared briefly for a few years, the bus has been recently updated and modernised (below), ready to be fully reintroduced into the service next year.

While transport may be a necessity for daily commutes, little thought is often given to its design process.

Transport for London (TfL) – a local governing body that runs most of England’s transport system – has teamed up with Out-of-Home advertising specialists Exterion Media and the London Transport Museum to create the Transported by Design programme.

“[Transport] is one of the most inspiring parts of our industry and worth pausing to recognise and appreciate,” says Exterion’s MD Jason Cotterrell.

Celebrating 150 years of transport in London, the programme launched last week and will run for 18 months.

Some of the work will include events, exhibitions and competitions – including designs for the Crossrail link and the upcoming Night Tube; featuring the iconic Johnston typeface (below) – the font that brands all rail markings; and commemorating former Transport MD Frank Pick at Piccadilly Circus tube station.

To mark the launch of the programme, TfL is calling on the public to vote for London’s most best transport designs and designers to feature in the first Design Icons exhibition.

Click here to view the shortlist and vote. You have until October 1.

The programme attempts to highlight how design improves London life by making every day journeys inspirational. For more information, visit the website.