An eye-catching COVID-19 safety campaign
I developed and managed the MTA's COVID-19 "Safe Travels" informational messaging. This integrated campaign included digital and print advertisements, as well as social distancing decals for both station walls and floors.
Almost all work on the campaign is done by my team, from the character illustration to asset production, to management of brand assets for other MTA agencies and groups to use.
Safe Travels assets quickly became ubiquitous in New York City, with other groups, businesses, and nearby towns adopting our style, colors, and even ripping off our designs.
Safe Travels was named as a finalist for PR Week's US "Best in Public Sector" award for 2021.
Instructional Car Card installed in 6400 subway cars.
Several cars received a "domination", where all ad space on one side of the car was replaced with Safe Travels messaging. Photo credit: Patrick Carey
Subway Car Card
The campaign was extended to MTA buses. Photo credit: Jeremy Zorek
Subway Car Card
Subway Car Card
Digital Assets
The Safe Travels campaign includes more than 100 digital assets, with variations for holidays, seasons, and special events. We leveraged the instantly-updating digital ad network in MTA subway stations to quickly update and rotate through messages, in order to keep capturing riders' attention.
Subway Car Cards
As part of the Safe Travels campaign, my team developed a full set of print ads for subway cars.
"How to wear a mask" assets were installed in every car in the fleet - more than 6400 subway cars.
More than 500 cars received a "domination", where a full half of the car's interior space was dedicated to Safe Travels messaging, including multilingual assets and format-specific designs.
Triptych Subway Digital Ad Display
Single Subway Digital Ad
On-board bus display. Photo credit: Brian Rogers
Photo credit: Marc Hermann
Social Distancing Signage and Decals
My team and I designed all decals and assets, as well as the installation guide for platform markings for all 472 subway stations.
Over 10,000 decals were installed, including hundreds of "easter egg" designs, including dancing shoes, paw prints, and more as a way to increase engagement on social media and compliance in station.
Subway Station Wall Decal
Standard Social Distancing Decal
Social Distancing decal installation. Photo credit: Marc Hermann
"Easter Egg" Decal
"Easter Egg" Decal
"Easter Egg" Decal
Photo credit: Marc Hermann
Crew Safety Decals
I helped develop and scope a set of decals for trains and buses to remind riders to keep a distance from the crew. These were installed inside all MTA buses, and both inside and outside all subway trains in the system.
Photo credit: Marc Hermann
Brand Guide and Partner Agencies
The MTA is made up of many fractured agencies with individual design teams. I created and shared a brand guide and asset library for the first time, allowing the campaign to stay consistent across New York City Transit, Long Island Rail Road, Metro-North Railroad, and other agencies.
