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The redesigned map, the first to be introduced in nearly half a century, is reminiscent of a version from the 1970s that was reviled by many traditionalists.
April 2, 2025Updated 1:00 p.m. ET
When it comes to the New York City subway, what once was old is new again.
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority on Wednesday revealed a revamped map of the city’s subway system that takes its cues from a 1970s throwback that was cheered by design connoisseurs its first time around and reviled by many traditionalists.
It is the first major overhaul of the subway map to be introduced by the authority in almost 50 years.
The reveal of the map, on a train platform in Times Square, was another step in the M.T.A.’s campaign to revitalize the subway’s image. The move comes at a time when the authority is lobbying for billions of dollars to upgrade the city’s mass transit system, while defending itself against criticisms from Washington about crime and congestion pricing.
The new map — a brightly colored variation on the current version that sacrifices some geographic detail for clarity — is reminiscent of the 1972 Unimark map, a modernist streamlining of the subways that rendered Central Park as a square and straightened the curvy contours of the system. The map was short-lived, replaced in 1979 by a version much closer to the current one.
The updated version is already being displayed on digital monitors, and will be posted in subway cars and platforms over the next several weeks, the M.T.A. said.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
Sean Piccoli contributed reporting.
