Webdesigner Depot has posted a plethora of official Metro maps from around the globe. They're really quite fascinating to look at side-by-side. Chicago doesn't look so bad compared with other world cities (take a look at Miami's single line, for instance), but a far cry from a Moscow or a Seoul.
This sort of map is interesting to me because I think it really shows the priorities of a place. Compare Atlanta with Barcelona...cities with similarly-sized metropolitan populations, and each a former Olympic host. The similarities end there, once you see how much more extensive Barcelona's system is. Atlanta's map, and many of the other American examples, put a great emphasis on showing us where riders can park their cars and the only roads shown are freeways. Now look at Barcelona's red...you'll see the funicular railway, the cable car, the ferry terminal, a couple dozen transfer points...but not a single park & ride. A resident of Barcelona would probably find it quite strange to drive one's car to get to the subway, but then again, there's likely a station within a couple hundred meters of their front door.
via the map room
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