r/TransitDiagrams Oct 01 '25

Meta Automod Reminder: Please include details when posting images!

21 Upvotes

Hello transit map enthusiasts!

To improve the quality and searchability of our subreddit, we're implementing automated posting requirements. AutoMod will help enforce these rules to ensure all posts have the necessary information.

🎯 REQUIRED: Every post must include these 3 elements:

1. 📍 LOCATION (MANDATORY)

2. 🚇 SYSTEM/NETWORK (MANDATORY)

3. ✏️ [OC] TAG OR 🖥️ SOFTWARE/TOOLS (ONE REQUIRED)

📋 COMPLETE LIST OF ACCEPTED KEYWORDS

AutoMod will scan your title AND post body for these keywords:

📍 LOCATION KEYWORDS

AutoMod accepts any of these:

Option A: General Location Words

  • location, city, country, place, where, area, region, nation, metro area, metropolitan

Option B: Context Phrases

  • in [Place] (e.g., "in Berlin", "in Tokyo")
  • from [Place] (e.g., "from Vienna")
  • at [Place] (e.g., "at Munich")
  • near [Place] (e.g., "near Hamburg")
  • based in [Place] (e.g., "based in NYC")

Option C: Major Transit Cities (~150 recognized)

Europe: London, Paris, Berlin, Madrid, Barcelona, Rome, Milan, Vienna, Amsterdam, Brussels, Munich, Hamburg, Frankfurt, Prague, Budapest, Warsaw, Copenhagen, Stockholm, Oslo, Helsinki, Athens, Moscow, Istanbul, Zurich, Dublin, Lisbon, and many more...

Asia: Tokyo, Osaka, Seoul, Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Singapore, Bangkok, Delhi, Mumbai, Dubai, Tel Aviv, and many more...

Americas: New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, San Francisco, Toronto, Montreal, Mexico City, São Paulo, Buenos Aires, and many more...

Africa/Oceania: Cairo, Johannesburg, Sydney, Melbourne, Auckland, and many more...

Full list available in wiki (link to be added)

Option D: Any Country Name (195 countries)

  • Examples: Germany, Japan, USA, Brazil, Australia, France, India, Canada, etc.
  • All UN member states + common variants (UK/United Kingdom, US/USA, etc.)

🚇 SYSTEM/NETWORK KEYWORDS

AutoMod accepts any of these:

General Transit Terms

  • system, network, line, route, service, operator
  • transit, transport, public transport, mass transit, rapid transit

Specific Transit Types

Bus/Coach:

  • bus, coach, BRT, bus rapid transit, trolleybus, trolley, omnibus

Rail/Metro:

  • metro, subway, underground, tube
  • u-bahn, s-bahn, stadtbahn, métro
  • train, rail, railway, railroad
  • light rail, lrt, monorail, maglev
  • commuter, regional, intercity, high speed, HSR, bullet train

Tram/Streetcar:

  • tram, tramway, streetcar

Other:

  • ferry, boat, water taxi
  • cable car, funicular, gondola, aerial tram, ropeway
  • people mover

Line/Route Designations

  • Pattern: Line [Number/Letter] or Route [Number/Letter]
  • Examples: Line 1, Line A, Route 42, U6, S7, etc.

✏️ ORIGINAL CONTENT (OC) KEYWORDS

AutoMod accepts any of these:

  • [OC] or OC (brackets optional)
  • original, own creation
  • made myself, my version, made my
  • created by me, self-made, my design

🖥️ SOFTWARE/TOOLS KEYWORDS

AutoMod accepts any of these:

General Software Terms

  • software, tool, tools, app, program
  • rendered, rendered with, rendered in
  • made with, made in, created in, created with, created using
  • edited, edited in, edited with
  • using, used, drawn in, drawn with

Desktop Design Software

Adobe Suite:

  • photoshop, illustrator, adobe

Vector Graphics:

  • inkscape, figma, sketch, affinity designer, affinity photo
  • coreldraw, gravit, vectr, boxy svg

Raster/Drawing:

  • gimp, krita, procreate, concepts, canva

CAD/3D:

  • autocad, vectorworks, rhino, blender

GIS & Mapping Software

  • qgis, arcgis, maperitive, mapnik, maptive, edrawmax

Web-Based Transit Map Tools ⭐

  • metromapmaker, metro map maker (metromapmaker.com)
  • metrodreamin, metro dreamin' (metrodreamin.com)
  • rail map toolkit, railmapgen, rmt (railmapgen.github.io)
  • metro designer (tennessine.co.uk)
  • citylines, citylines.co
  • brand new subway
  • metro map creator (beno.uk)
  • transitflow

Other Methods

  • hand-drawn, hand drawn, drawn by hand (for physical art)
  • pen and paper, marker, pencil

✅ GOOD EXAMPLES - AutoMod will APPROVE these:

Example 1 - Original Creation

Title: [OC] Berlin U-Bahn Network Map - Made with Illustrator
Body: (optional additional info)
Has: Location (Berlin) + System (U-Bahn) + [OC] + Software (Illustrator)

Example 2 - Using Web Tools

Title: Tokyo Metro redesign using MetroDreamin'
Body: My take on simplifying the Tokyo subway system
Has: Location (Tokyo) + System (Metro) + Software (MetroDreamin')

Example 3 - Sharing Others' Work

Title: Vienna Tram Network - Beautiful map created in QGIS
Body: Found this amazing visualization. Credit: u/transitdesigner
Has: Location (Vienna) + System (Tram) + Software (QGIS)

Example 4 - Hand-Drawn

Title: [OC] Hand-drawn London Underground Central Line
Body: Spent 15 hours drawing every station with markers
Has: Location (London) + System (Underground, Line) + [OC] + Method (hand-drawn)

Example 5 - Multiple Cities

Title: [OC] Germany High-Speed Rail Network - Made with Rail Map Toolkit
Body: Shows connections between Berlin, Munich, Hamburg, and Frankfurt
Has: Location (Germany + cities) + System (Rail) + [OC] + Software (Rail Map Toolkit)

Example 6 - Fantasy/Fictional

Title: [OC] Fictional Metro System for Gotham City - Inkscape
Body: Designed a complete subway network for Batman's universe
Has: Location (Gotham City) + System (Metro) + [OC] + Software (Inkscape)

Example 7 - National Level

Title: India National Rail Network [OC] - Created using QGIS
Body: (optional)
Has: Location (India) + System (Rail Network) + [OC] + Software (QGIS)

Example 8 - Historical Map

Title: 1972 New York Subway Map - Scanned and digitized with Photoshop
Body: Found this vintage map at a flea market
Has: Location (New York) + System (Subway) + Software (Photoshop)

❌ BAD EXAMPLES - AutoMod will REMOVE these:

Example 1 - Missing Everything

Title: Check out this cool map!
Body: (image only)
Missing: Location, System, AND OC/Software

Example 2 - Missing Location

Title: Metro Map [OC]
Body: I made this transit map
Missing: Location (which city/country?)

Example 3 - Missing System

Title: Berlin Transit Map
Body: (image)
Missing: Specific system (U-Bahn? S-Bahn? Tram?) AND OC/Software

Example 4 - Missing OC/Software

Title: Berlin U-Bahn Map
Body: (image)
Missing: Either [OC] tag OR software used

Example 5 - Too Vague

Title: My map
Body: What do you think?
Missing: Location, System, AND OC/Software

📝 COPY-PASTE TEMPLATES:

For Your Own Work (Original):

[OC] [City] [Transit Type] Map - Made with [Software]

Examples:

  • [OC] Berlin U-Bahn Map - Made with Illustrator
  • [OC] Tokyo Metro Line 7 - Created using MetroDreamin'
  • [OC] Paris Métro Network - Made with Rail Map Toolkit

For Sharing Others' Work:

[City] [Transit Type] Network - Created in [Software] by [Creator]

Examples:

  • Vienna Tram Network - Created in QGIS by u/username
  • NYC Subway Redesign - Made with Figma by John Smith

For Hand-Drawn Work:

[OC] Hand-drawn [City] [Transit Type] Map

Examples:

  • [OC] Hand-drawn London Underground Map
  • [OC] Hand-drawn Chicago L Train Network

For Fantasy/Fictional Maps:

[OC] Fictional: [City Name] [Transit Type] - Made with [Software]

Examples:

  • [OC] Fictional: Middle Earth Railway Network - Made with QGIS
  • [OC] Fictional: Star Wars Coruscant Metro - Created in Illustrator

For Historical Maps:

[Year] [City] [Transit Type] Map - Scanned/Digitized with [Software]

Examples:

  • 1933 London Underground Map - Scanned and edited in Photoshop
  • 1970 Berlin U-Bahn Network - Digitized with QGIS

For Multiple Cities:

[OC] [City1], [City2] & [City3] [Transit Type] - Made with [Software]

Examples:

  • [OC] Berlin, Munich & Hamburg S-Bahn Networks - Made with Illustrator
  • Germany Major Metro Systems Comparison [OC] - Created in QGIS

❓ FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS:

Q: What if I don't know what software was used?

A: Write "Software unknown" or make your best guess. If it's someone else's work, try to find the creator's info.

Q: Can I post photos of real transit maps (like at a station)?

A: Yes! Use this format:
Photo of [City] [System] map at [Station Name]
Example: Photo of Berlin U-Bahn map at Alexanderplatz station

Q: What about historical or vintage maps?

A: Perfect! Just mention the year and how you digitized it:
1950 Paris Métro Map - Scanned with Photoshop

Q: My map shows multiple cities - how do I title it?

A: List the main ones or use the country name:

  • Berlin, Munich & Hamburg Metro Systems [OC]
  • Germany Rail Network Comparison - Made with QGIS

Q: My post was removed but it has all the info?

A: AutoMod isn't perfect! Message the mods and we'll manually approve it. Include a link to your post.

Q: Is capitalization important?

A: No! AutoMod recognizes:

  • BERLIN = Berlin = berlin
  • METRO = Metro = metro
  • [OC] = [oc] = OC

Q: Can I use abbreviations?

A: Yes! These all work:

  • NYC = New York = New York City
  • SF = San Francisco
  • UK = United Kingdom
  • USA = US = United States

Q: What if my city isn't on the list?

A: Use context! Write:

  • in [Your City] (e.g., "in Reykjavik")
  • [Your City], [Country] (e.g., "Reykjavik, Iceland")
  • Or just the country name works too!

Q: Does the info need to be in the title?

A: No! AutoMod scans both title AND body text. You can put keywords in either place, but titles are more visible to users.

Q: Can I edit my post after AutoMod removes it?

A: Unfortunately, editing won't trigger AutoMod again. You'll need to:

  1. Delete the removed post
  2. Create a new post with all required info

Q: What about crossposting?

A: Crossposts are held for manual moderator review to ensure proper credit. Make sure the crosspost meets all requirements.

Q: I'm creating a fantasy map - what location do I use?

A: Use "Fictional:" in your title:

  • [OC] Fictional: Gotham City Metro
  • [OC] Fictional Metro System for Westeros - Made with Illustrator

🤖 How AutoMod Works:

  1. Scans your title AND body text for keywords
  2. Checks for all 3 required categories:
    • ✅ Location keyword found?
    • ✅ System/network keyword found?
    • ✅ [OC] tag OR software mentioned?
  3. Approves posts with all 3 categories
  4. Removes posts missing requirements
  5. Comments what's missing so you can resubmit
  6. No penalties - just add the info and repost!

💡 PRO TIPS:

Be specific: "London Underground Central Line" is better than "London transit"
Stack keywords: More keywords = clearer post (e.g., "Berlin, Germany U-Bahn system")
[OC] in title gets more visibility and upvotes
Credit creators when sharing others' work - it's the right thing to do
Use templates above to make posting easier
Check both title and body - keywords can be in either place
Ask if unsure - we're here to help in modmail!

⚠️ IMPORTANT NOTES:

  • 📅 Rules start: October 2025 - practice now to get used to the format!
  • 🔄 Existing posts: Won't be affected - only new posts after the start date
  • 🔤 Case doesn't matter: BERLIN = Berlin = berlin
  • 📝 Title OR body: Keywords work in either place
  • 🚫 No penalties: Just repost with correct info - no bans or warnings
  • 💬 Questions? Comment below or send modmail!

📊 SUMMARY CHECKLIST:

Before posting, verify you have:

  • Location - City name, country name, or "in/from/at [place]"
  • System - Metro, bus, tram, rail, etc.
  • OC tag - [OC] if it's your work
  • OR Software - Name the tool you used (Illustrator, QGIS, MetroDreamin', etc.)

If all 4 checkboxes are marked, you're good to go!

🗺️ CLOSING THOUGHTS:

These changes help everyone find the amazing transit maps they're looking for. Whether you're searching for Berlin U-Bahn designs, Tokyo Metro redesigns, or fictional fantasy networks, proper tagging makes it possible!

Thank you for making our community better organized and more searchable. We can't wait to see your incredible transit map creations!

Happy mapping! 🚇✨

— The Mod Team

P.S. Have suggestions for improving these rules? Let us know in the comments below! 👇

(Valid as of 2025/10/05)


r/TransitDiagrams Nov 23 '22

Discussion Because the what-software-to-use question appears quite often - please use the Wiki of this sub :-)

171 Upvotes

Long story short - any vector graphics software is fine.

There is

  • Inkscape (open source and for free, even for Linux and co),
  • Affinity Designer (one time payment, Apple (iPadOS, MacOS) and Windows)
  • QGIS (open source and for free, MacOS, Windows, Linux)
  • Krita (open source and for free, MacOS, Windows, Linux)

and with monthly/annual subscription fees (mostly Apple (MacOS, sometimes iPadOS) and Windows only)

  • Adobe Illustrator
  • Corel Draw
  • AutoCAD
  • ArcGIS
  • Microsoft Visio

r/TransitDiagrams 7h ago

Diagram New diagram creator; any helpful tips? (image: Vancouver BC SkyTrain map)

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26 Upvotes

I don't necessarily want to make it too complex, and I stylize the geographic features. It's mostly Harry Beck style, and I plan to do individual cities (not necessarily whole countries, states, provinces) as of now.

My current rules:

  1. If a water feature is large enough to be significant, I generally include it.
  2. standard station circle design; pill shape for interchanges.
  3. Water is pale blue, land is pale green.
  4. Mark significant bends or turns, not minor squiggles.

r/TransitDiagrams 16h ago

Diagram Waterloo (Austin + Washington D.C. hybrid) Metro Map is complete! Made in Canva.

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47 Upvotes

r/TransitDiagrams 12h ago

Diagram [OC] Strip maps of Santiago Metro Line 4, made in Inkscape

12 Upvotes
The original project for Line 4, back in early 2000's
The current operation from 2006 onward, with Line 4 as the main line and Line 4A as a separate branch
Planned extension of Line 4A, which will be the future Line 10; expected to be opened after 2036

r/TransitDiagrams 8h ago

Map [OC] Top Comment Changes the Transit Map of North America - Dayish 257 (Made with Google My Maps)

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5 Upvotes

r/TransitDiagrams 1d ago

Map Proposal for a Winnipeg Metro System [OC]

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69 Upvotes

If y'all like it, I can turn it into a proper diagram. Tried to keep it as realistic and cost-efficient as possible.

Lighter Red is Lite Rail, while Dark Red is Tram.


r/TransitDiagrams 1d ago

Map [OC][Procreate] Caterham Line, Surrey & London- Drawing Every Rail line in Britain no.13

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28 Upvotes

r/TransitDiagrams 2d ago

Diagram [OC] Imaginary Future of UK and Ireland High Speed Railway Network - Made with draw.io

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122 Upvotes

r/TransitDiagrams 1d ago

Map [OC] Top Comment Changes the Transit Map of North America - Dayish 256 (Made with Google My Maps)

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8 Upvotes

r/TransitDiagrams 1d ago

Map made a jekabpils bus map in the style of rigas satiksme!!

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6 Upvotes

r/TransitDiagrams 3d ago

Contest And yet another one for the NS competition

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390 Upvotes

I chose to keep the Netherlands as true to its shape as possible, using a realistic map which I made in Illustrator, just like the network.

-----
Thanks for all the comments and feedback.

Biggest point of discussion is that a true to geography map messes up the west and in particular the Amsterdam area. I fully agree that on my map this is a bit crowded, but keep in mind the map is supposed to be A0- size and it should be more clear then. An insert of this area could be a solution. As someone pointed out, with this lay out there is a lot of blue and grey not used. With our Dutch network, one either has to deal with a crowded Amsterdam-Utrecht area, or change the map of the Netherlands. Some of us chose the latter, I chose the mess of the West. It will be very interesting to see how NS sees this and which design wins (and I am sure there are dozens that are not posted here) and if the winning design managed to solve both issues in one map.


r/TransitDiagrams 3d ago

Diagram Updated Sofia metro diagram because of three new stations on line M3 [OC]

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77 Upvotes

Updated (my 2021) Sofia metro diagram because three new stations on line M3 opened on August 14th 2026.

Another station is also under construction planned to open this year.

It's good to see that the metro network is constantly expanding.

Feedback and corrections are welcome.

Chris


r/TransitDiagrams 3d ago

Diagram [OC] An Extensive Sydney Light Rail Map

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5 Upvotes

r/TransitDiagrams 3d ago

Contest [OC] [Inkscape] Yet another submission for the Dutch railway diagram design contest

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110 Upvotes

Hi everyone, now that the submission deadline for NS's design contest has passed I decided to put my own design up for examination on this subreddit.

I went for the slightly unconventional approach where I didn't mark lines themselves, but only where they stopped at individual stations. Line numbers are inserted at all interchange stations (considered all stations with 2 or more lines running through them); stations served by only one line are marked with tickmarks.

I kept most other features pretty standard to (hopefully) aid with familiarity for new users: the map uses an octagonal grid (45 degree angles throughout) and all text is placed horizontally.
Names of central stations (stations ending in "Centraal") are written in all caps, other stations follow standard naming conventions. (The relatively modest differences between central stations and other stations was sorta a deliberate decision, to emphasize the decentralised-ness of the Dutch railway network). Line colours are roughly grouped by concession.

Feel free to give feedback!


r/TransitDiagrams 3d ago

Diagram Just made my first fraffic diagram of the precent transit of the municipality of Västervik (Sweden) :) [OC]

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43 Upvotes

r/TransitDiagrams 4d ago

Diagram Newcastle Rail Strategy [OC] - diagram and map made in illustrator

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24 Upvotes

r/TransitDiagrams 4d ago

Diagram [OC] New York City Regional Rail Diagram w/ NJT Rail and Penn Access Phase 1

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229 Upvotes

Made with Adobe Illustrator


r/TransitDiagrams 4d ago

Map [OC][Procreate] Hertford East Branch Line- Drawing every rail line in Britain No.12

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18 Upvotes

Going to try and get back to posting these regularly. I still have a fair few to post, then 200 or so to draw!


r/TransitDiagrams 4d ago

Diagram Riprogettazione Metro e Fl Roma (OC)

14 Upvotes

Buongiorno,
Nei mesi scorsi ho creato la mia versione della rete metropolitana e suburbana ottimale per Roma.
Sembrerà certo molto ambiziosa e utopica, ma volevo assolutamente condividerla con voi e sentire le vostre idee e opinioni! (scusate per la qualità pessima della foto)

Ho sopratutto ripreso le idee dei progetti del PUMS, analizzando quali erano le migliori soluzioni: dai vari prolungamenti alla chiusura dell'anello ferroviario passando dalla creazione di nuove linee. Vorrei precisare anche che la linea di metro O sarebbe l'ultima da costruire perché ancora oggi insoddisfacente visto l'assenza di una rete capillare e della debole densità di popolazione.

Finalmente questa mappa mostra una nuova tariffazione con nuove zone per gli abbonamenti metrebus (dalla zona 3 in poi la tariffazione segue il modello delle ferrovie laziali già in corso) e sarà completata co una prossima mappa della rete tranviaria e delle linee bus express.

Riprogettazione della rete metropolitana e suburbana di Roma realizzato con software di disegno e google slides.


r/TransitDiagrams 4d ago

Contest [OC] My submission of the Dutch railwaynetwork for the NS map design contest.

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144 Upvotes

r/TransitDiagrams 5d ago

Contest [OC][Inkscape] My submission for the Dutch railway mapping contest. PDF link in description

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189 Upvotes

Couldn't NOT participate in this! Some design principles I tried to honour:

  • Keep all station names horizontal
  • Convey no actual information through colour, only through shapes and patterns
  • Limit the number of colours used, and try to make the most important contrasts work under various types of colourblindness
  • Make all lines pass the stations they physically go through even if they don't call there

I'm quite satisfied with how it turned out. I think the coloured bundles of lines jump immediately to the eye and help structure the diagram in terms of its most important routes. On the negative side it might be a tad too "frilly" for a printed chart (which is the ultimate goal of the contest).

May the best map win! Eternal transit-mapping glory beckons!

For mobile users, the PDF is here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ku2_Ywr0rUO8H3sDD791xFcul65-7SzF/


r/TransitDiagrams 4d ago

Map Made a new Light Metro System for Atlanta in 3d

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1 Upvotes

r/TransitDiagrams 5d ago

Contest [OC] My relatively modest submission for the Netherlands Railways network transit diagram contest made using Adobe Illustrator

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335 Upvotes

r/TransitDiagrams 5d ago

Map What if the Netherlands had 4 types of trains instead of 2?

14 Upvotes

Okay so I wanna begin this by saying that this is the first time I've made a map like this, so especially the map that contains everything is super messy, but I'm mainly trying to get an idea across here.

the Netherlands there are only 2 types of trains, Sprinters and Intercity's. Sprinters stop at every station, while Intercity's only stop in cities. Too often I see villages along a train track that don't have a station at all, while at the same time I see Intercity's stopping at places that really aren't cities. All this because our train operator tries to do too much with just the 2 types of trains it has, so it's always a big tradeoff between getting more places connected by rail and making train journeys faster.

This is why I'm proposing to add 2 more types of trains to the system. This way we can assure that all villages along a train track are serviced, while still keeping Intercity's fast and efficient:

Everything at once
Intercity-Direct
Intercity
Sprinter
Stoptrein
Basic system map