Europe by FAR has better transportation then the US. 100 times over. Take this bus for example. I took this picture on my trip to Barcelona, Spain. A few things are immediately different. First of all, its clean, new-looking, and well kept. Second of all, check out the windows…They are meant to be looked out from. The windows are big, clean, and clear (not plastered with some see through wrap…that’s not really see through). However, the bus still has advertisement on the bottom. The advertisement is still visible and yet its placement enables the passengers to have a good view of the city through the massively huge and gorgeous bus windows. It makes sense right? I mean, Barcelona is an absolutely gorgeous city; clean, vibrant, and fun. (If you have not visited Barcelona, you have to…start saving….). It would be a crime to hinder the views from a bus to such an appealing sight. But wait a minute, does this mean that what we are saying with our buses, in the way that we have our tiny little tinted or advertisment-plastered windows, that our cities are not worthy to be looked at? Are we saying that we have done such a horrible job at laying out our cities that they lack vibrancy, luster, curb appeal, and “awe” factor? Hmmm, lets see: (by the way, the bus model for the Barcelona bus here is the Iveco GNC 491E)
NYC Transit New Flyer D60HF #5400 works the Bx40 line at Burnside and Jerome Avenues in Bronx, NY. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Above, we have the New York City bus. This one happens to be a D60HF Articulated Flyer. When you start to compare the two buses, the differences are abrasively obvious. For starters, the Flyer bus (directly above this paragraph), like the Barcelona Iveco GNC bus (first bus pictured in this post) has huge windows, however the Flyer bus windows are not as big as the Iveco’s. Moreover, the flyer windows are tinted. This causes two things. First, its difficult for people from the outside to look inside. This creates a dissension between the people inside the bus and the people outside. Second, it’s difficult for the people inside to look outside, this disassociates people on the inside from viewing the outside. This may not seem like much, however, for those who
Bus window (Photo credit: Tom Chambers)
understand design, you know that connection is crucial. When you design something (anything), you want to make sure that this design is clearly connected with its context (unless you purposely disconnect it…. that’s another ball park all together). In this case, the disconnection is accomplished through the tinted windows. To put this whole window issue into perspective. Take a look at major department stores in big cities with store fronts adjacent to the streets. Notice their windows. What do you see? Everything. Everything they want you to see, from the awesome Gucci bag, to the state of the art toys. The point is, they entice you with the window (and the merchandise inside). To tint these windows would just be absurd. So then why do we, Americans, do the same with our bus windows?
Another note in the differences in the design is their advertisement. Check out the Iveco’s advertisement. Its clean, appealing, and adds to the aesthetics of the bus. Its a very effective advertisement that not only enhances the product but also enhances the vehicle. Now, lets take a look at the Flyer. The Advertisement is a cheap looking, square paper box, plastered to the side of the bus that does nothing to enhance the bus nor the product that its advertising. No wonder buses are considered so lowly in the US. We design them in such a way where we cant see them as anything else.
So to answer the question above. Are US buses designed in such a way were inadvertently they are saying our cities are not worthy to be looked at? I think so.
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