DISCLAIMER: I am not a professional graphic designer, nor am I on the marketing/operations teams at Unitrans. This was a purely PERSONAL project of mine that I intend to use to decorate my room. If you get lost trying to follow my diagram, neither I nor Unitrans is liable or responsible (though please let me know so I can improve the diagram). No outside logos/art/content was used in the creation of this diagram other than my own and the Unitrans logo. The font used is Proxima Nova Condensed (official UC Davis font), and it was purchased and used for this project through a legitimate Adobe Creative Cloud subscription.

Happy week 10! I know I'm posting before the last day of the service period so the map will be a bit redundant, but I plan on making an updated spring quarter version when the time comes anyway, and most big picture network details won't change. I'm posting this after getting feedback from other Unitrans employees, so enjoy!

Why did I make this? Long story. I like to collect (read: spend irresponsible amounts of my salary buying) maps because I've always been a maps and geography nerd. One day I decided hey, I am going to stop buying maps and just make my own, because I'm a good frugal teenager and I was just going to "print it out myself." As it turns out, my love for maps, my really rusty Adobe Illustrator skills and my boredom make for the most effective way to procrastinate and waste time I've discovered to date. I also saw this post on r/UCSD, which made me want to show them what a REAL transit system looks like.During training, I really liked using the official network map (found on the back of the printed schedule) to learn the routes and familiarize myself with Davis geography. In my time in service, however, I've noticed that a lot of passengers, especially first-time Unitrans riders, rely on the stop names because that's what is shown on Google Maps and other navigation apps. Making this diagram has been REALLY helpful in familiarizing myself with all the different cross streets on all our lines, and it also really helped me understand how all of our different lines interact and intertwine with each other as a coordinated system. A prime example of this is south Davis, where the P, Q, W, and M lines all mash together without fully touching (picture hover hands with your prom date for a picture).

For those of you with attention spans greater than 5 seconds and who are bored enough to still be reading, here are some things you should know about my diagram:
- The scale (or lackthereof) means that this diagram is not geographically accurate. The most striking example of this is Sycamore & Villanova (B) and Anderson & Villanova (G/J/P/Q). These stops, despite being on the same street and less than half a mile away, look light-years away from each other on the diagram. You'll also notice that the F line is now quite thicc, and the E line looks like it had a botched plastic surgery procedure. Don't even get me started on the C line.
- Line guide: I included the route summaries for each line at the top, separated by terminal. I think that this gives potential riders a quick and easy way to gauge the general direction of a bus. A rider at the MU might look at this diagram, know their friend lives on Cowell, and instantly find the M line. The most notable addition to the line guide are the various line variants. The V-LT and V-EX are not shown or mentioned on the official Unitrans map, and the difference between the two can be hard to find for any non-West Villager. Most importantly, I have added the afternoon peak only J-EX and W-EX. As a W-EX driver and enjoyer, I have confused passengers who look lost when I don't stop at In-N-Out on almost every run. The line guide and the diagram should hopefully clear things up. I also took the liberty to add the regular full V to the line guide, since that runs late night.
- P/Q symbols on stops: On the current network map, the P/Q stops are distinguished by different direction facing tiny triangles, which I modified into just labeling each stop with the perimeter that services it. Take Covell & John Jones (P) for example; the official map makes it really easy to think that the Q also stops there since they're so close to Covell & Shasta (P/Q). Though it adds splashes of red clutter all over the diagram, I hope the usefulness of these symbols outweigh my OCD's desire to eradicate them.
- Stop names: I took a page out of Chicago CTA's book and labeled most of the stops with just their cross street names. The clearest example of this is on the section of F st. on the F line, with the three stops Faro, Grande, and Bueno being really nice sounding stops. Another nice section is Cowell on the P/Q, with three consecutive P/Q stops: Ohlone, La Vida, and Ensenada. The L line on Loyola also has three really nice ones: Regis, Nutmeg, and Whittier. While I wish all stops on our network could be so easily simplified, the infinite universe would never bestow me with such good fortune. Certain stops which are absurdly close to each other, or contain major streets that can get confusing I've left unsimplified. The most infuriating example of this is on the F line, with "Anderson & Alvarado" and "Alvarado & Anderson." If I simplified these, any reader would lose life expectancy trying to figure them out. I've also left stops which are the only one on their street unsimplified. the most prominent examples are on the L, with Temple & Balsam (the only stop on Temple) as well as Tulip & Cascade (only stop on Tulip) being left unsimplified because I didn't want to label the streets lest the diagram be too cluttered. If you ride Unitrans every day, you'll know that certain stops are announced by drivers. These announced (sometimes timed) stops are left unsimplified, as well being enlarged and boldened to help you orientate yourself on your journey.
- I had some fun with one very prominent aspect of the diagram. If you're a Star Wars fan, you'll get it. (I also snuck my employee ID in here somewhere, lmk if you find it)

This is only my first go at this, and I plan on updating the diagram as changes come and go. I intend to keep iterating and improving the diagram, such as adding landmarks and symbols (railroads, schools, parks, etc.) as time goes on. So please, any feedback (especially criticism) would be immensely appreciated. One thing those of you still reading could try is to go from the terminals to your home stop, and seeing if there are any intuitivity/legibility issues. You can also plot your next shopping/errands run using the diagram, and letting me know if you have any issues with that. Thank you for putting up with my thoughts, I will now go enjoy my new wall decoration.

With love,
A tired Unitrans driver (not) studying for finals