A complete identity for Bergen’s new light rail
What does it take to create a new transportation system that not only improves the way you move around in a city, but also enhances the experience and offerings of the urban landscape? Answering this fundamental question helped Kontrapunkt winning the contest for The Bergen Light Rail.
Kontrapunkt’s winning proposal for The Bergen Light Rail comprised platform architecture, design of uniforms and trains and a clear visual identity for the transit system. The contest was won by a consortium consisting of Kontrapunkt and the Bergen based firms Cubus Arkitekter and Fuggibaggi Design. Kontrapunkt’s design solution focuses on user needs and accessibility through a highly functional, modernistic visual identity. The result is a distinct visual solution that communicates The Bergen Light Rail and its stations through the interplay of the characteristic orange colour and the shape of the information panels. The overall architectural aim of the winning proposal has been to subtly inscribe the stations and platforms as an integral part of the city’s existing urban space.
THE CHALLENGE
“The challenge was to create an unmistakable visual identity that could represent The Bergen Light Rail both as an integral part of Bergen and the everyday lives of its inhabitants. Thereby emphasizing Bergen’s position as a modern and dynamic city. Kontrapunkt’s solution consisted of a modernistic and minimalist design that draws on the city’s natural elements and focuses on a very direct, though subtle, communication in the urban setting,” explains Kontrapunkt’s managing director and chief designer Kim Meyer Andersen. He stresses that composition of the consortium with two Bergen based firms has played a crucial role in the project proposal’s success.
THE SOLUTION - ORANGE DUCT TAPE AND A PIECE OF NORWEGIAN GRANITE
In solving the question of how to make a complete branding solution for a modern urban transit system careful attention was given to the needs and views of the users as well as to Bergen’s individual urban context and surrounding nature. The prime inspiration for the design concept was the interaction between the materiality of Bergen’s granite base and the unambiguous orange colour. The orange colour and the special developed typeface run through every instance of the design identity of The Bergen Light Rail – from the coaches and uniforms to the platforms and information boards as well as tickets and timetables.
OUR RAIL - THE NAME AND THE BRAND
To underline the crucial role of the passengers the name “Banen Vår” (“Our Rail”) was chosen as the proposal’s title. By combining the logo name with the architectural structure of the platforms and the unifying orange colour, Kontrapunkt created an all-encompassing visual brand for the light rail. This effect is elegantly achieved by using every station’s information panel as a visual beacon that assembles all communication between user and the rail.
URBANITY WITH NATURAL ELEMENTS
The focal point of the solution was to combine and utilize the materiality of Bergen’s natural environment with the city’s historical urban layout. Materials like trees and rocks were used in the exterior design of the stations in order to enhance the experience of travelling in an urban space encompassed by the areas rough nature with mountain and woods.
KONTRAPUNKT AND PUBLIC SPACE BRANDING
The Bergen Light Rail is the result of applying Kontrapunkt’s strong expertise within the fields of exterior branding, signage design and visual identity to public space branding. Of which Kontrapunkt’s award winning branding solution created for Billund Airport is a prime example. The success of the branding of both Billund Airport and Bergen Light Rail highlights the importance of holistic solutions to complex challenges in the development of public transport and transit systems.
For further information, please contact:
Lars Larson, Tel +45 3393 1883,
or
Kim Meyer Andersen / Managing Director, Tel +45 33 93 18 83,
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