SEGD 2010 No. 27 - 71

trafﬁc regulatory; park entrance and facility identiﬁcation; and “visitor information,” which includes signs relating to regulations, interpretation, resource protection, general information, safety, and pedestrian wayﬁnding. A major part of the work to develop new standards was the search for a typeface to replace Clarendon. The new typeface needed to have a distinctive but more contemporary look, be easier to read, and be approved by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA). Meeker chose type designer James Montalbano for the task. Working with the Pennsylvania Trafﬁc Institute (at Penn State University) to test various possibilities, the design team eventually created a handsome serif face that Montalbano named Rawlinson in honor of his father-in-law (who was, ironically, a colleague of Smokey Bear at the Forest Service). NPS Rawlinson proved to be signiﬁcantly easier to read than Clarendon, and was ultimately approved by FHWA for use on roadways in national parks. Early in the process of developing the identity standards, Montalbano gave DKDG drafts of the Rawlinson type family and the ﬁrm incorporated them into its prototypes and templates. Eventually Rawlinson was paired with Frutiger to give the NPS two distinctive and functional typefaces. The decision to move away from Helvetica, which it had used for many years, was not easy for the NPS, given its respect for Massimo Vignelli and his love for the typeface. Like the redesigned Arrowhead logo, the NPS sign standards faced mixed reactions when introduced. Its champions and its critics often focused on the same issue: consistency. Some recognized the contribution that consistent signage would make to effective communication and to the creation of a distinctive and strong public identity. Others insisted that “modern” graphics and materials were at NPS provides room for much ﬂexibility in the design of its wayside (interpretive) signs, but UniGrid inﬂuences can be seen in the black bands, familiar typefaces, and horizontal layouts. segdDESIGN 71

SEGD 2010 No. 27

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of SEGD 2010 No. 27