Project

CATS – Charlotte, NC

The Charlotte Area Transit System (CATS) hired Ilium to develop a branded signage program for the LYNX Light Rail system. The scope of work covered the full range of passenger-facing environments, including stations, park-and-ride facilities, the central business district (CBD), and off-site wayfinding. Ilium’s team designed and produced all passenger signage and information elements throughout the system, ensuring a cohesive and legible identity that guided riders from the street to the platform. This work extended Ilium’s existing relationship with CATS, which had previously included upgraded signage for system-wide bus stops and unique signage for CBD bus stops.

In addition to the station signage program, Ilium provided related brand strategy services to support CATS as it expanded its transit network. This included initial brand development for their Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) service, as well as a review of their overall brand platform to ensure alignment across modes and service types. The LYNX project demonstrated Ilium’s full-service capability in environmental graphic design, from high-level brand strategy through the technical design and implementation of a multi-environment wayfinding system for a major light rail network.

Services Provided

• System-wide LYNX Light Rail station signage design and development
• Park-and-ride facility signage
• Central Business District (CBD) wayfinding signage
• Off-site wayfinding design
• Passenger information elements throughout all stations
• Bus stop signage upgrades for CATS system-wide bus network
• Unique CBD bus stop signage
• Initial brand development for CATS Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) service
• Review and assessment of CATS overall brand platform