I've seen a postcard design going around for the CA High-Speed Train, but there were a few things about it I felt could be done differently to deliver a stronger message. I think seeing is believing, and the previous design did not actually depict what the train would look like, so I wanted to feature one of the 3D visualizations front and center. It still incorporates the simplified transit map of the route from the previous design. On the back I put some of the key points of the project based on what seems to be some of the strongest selling points when discussing the train in online forums.
I'm printing a run of 1000 post cards through Overnight Prints, and myself and friends of mine in the cycling community will help distribute these in venues around Los Angeles by bicycle delivery. I didn't quite get them out in time for CALPIRG's voter awareness drive at the Franklin Village Festival, but I did stop by to help talk to voters for a little while. All of the people I talked to there were highly receptive of the project except for one hipster dude with over sized sunglasses who was opposed to Prop1A for "personal reasons".
If you are in the L.A. area and would like to help distribute post cards, let me know. Also via links provided below, are .eps files of the front and back of the design for anyone who would like to do their own run. If you upload these files to Overnight Prints, you can get pretty slick looking postcards made and delivered for fairly cheap with a fast turn around time.
The election is sneaking up fast, so if we want to someday zip around California on electric power at 220 mph with ample leg room, I encourage supporters of this project to help spread the word by what ever means you can.
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5 comments:
@ gary -
the postcards look really nice and give concise information about the benefits HSR would bring. Kudos to you for investing your time, talent and dubloons in PR for prop 1A.
Unfortunately, I'm concerned the color coding you have used for the route map may cause some confusion. It looks like a subway map and this system will operate very differently. On any given day, there will eventually be some number of direct trains between each set of end points: SF-LA-OC, SF-Sac, SF-LA-SD, Sac-LA-OC, presumably OC-LA-SD as well. It might make more sense to use color cues to illustrate the construction phases.
Phase I of HSR construction would be SF-LA/Anaheim (2012-2018/20). Phase II would be the spurs to Sacramento and San Diego via Riverside plus the extension to Irvine (2020-2028). At this point, anything else - e.g. San Jose to Oakland - is merely "under consideration" and has little chance of breaking ground before 2028.
I do like the idea of showing that HSR will leverage the existing standard-speed passenger railroads as feeders. After all, some 10% of prop 1A would go directly to them. Unfortunately, it's hard to get all that across on an artful graphic on one sliver of one side of a postcard.
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Btw, in case it comes up: CHSRA decided against running the tracks parallel to I-5 between Irvine and SD for following reasons:
- the existing rail alignment passes underneath some unstable cliffs near Del Mar, other sections face tsunami risk (yes, there are unstable cliffs under water as well)
- the existing ROW is very narrow south of Irvine and, the beach communities there strongly opposed the addition of two new tracks with overhead catenaries
- the state wants to lure airlines to the underutilized airport in Ontario since LAX, John Wayne and Lindbergh field are all unable to add runways
- last not least, a lot more people live in the Inland Empire corridor (in spite of record foreclosure rates).
Similar reasons applied to the detour via Palmdale. The I-5 Grapevine offered only one geologically viable alignment that crossed both the Garlock and San Andreas faults above ground and, it runs very close to a wildlife preserve near Lake Castaic.
So yes, there is reason to the madness, at least in SoCal.
Given the current time constraints and my busy schedule, I just left that route lay out completely unchanged from the existing postcard that has been going around. My main goal with this was to get a slick picture of one of those 3d graphics on there and hit more talking points than the previous postcard had.
I'm hoping this generates some interest in viewers to inquire further. I'm going to get these out all around by bicycle delivery in L.A., with my self hitting the West Side and friends doing runs for me in other parts of town. I also left a fat stack with the L.A. organizer for CALPIRG's prop 1A campaign.
That is a far better design, Gary. The NARP one has an early 1960s feel as well as is far too busy on the reverse panel.
Very cool! I will be printing some of these out and sending them to my family!
rafael, thanks for the info about the route south of Irvine. I was wondering about that.
Yes on 1A!
Great Postcard. Really looking Awesome.
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