Translink's slow-burn rebranding

[nathandavid88]

Has anyone on here noticed the slow-burn rebranding Translink has been undertaking of late? It seems like there is a definitive move happening that will retire this venerable old logo in favour of a fresh, new facelifted version.



It appears to have started with the revamped version of the logo introduced for the Smart Ticketing rollout:



I had initially assumed that this was an isolated revamp of the logo until I noticed it being used on non-Smart Ticketing related collateral:


20201215_162040 by Nathan Murray, on Flickr

And then it appeared on the side of our new KittyCats:



And this past weekend, I saw that some badly deteriorated signage at Eight Mile Plains Station has been replaced with signs featuring the new logo:


20210209_164136 by Nathan Murray, on Flickr


20210209_164301 by Nathan Murray, on Flickr


20210209_164739 by Nathan Murray, on Flickr


However, while this revamped logo is rolling out further, I find it kind of strange that there has been no sign of it on Translink's website or social media platforms beyond uses relating to Smart Ticketing promotion. Usually, if you are updating your logo, one of the first place you use to introduce it is through website and social media, as it costs practically nothing to do so.

Has anyone noticed this new version pop up anywhere else?

[SurfRail]

It is also on the Gen 4 CityCats and various internal signage in both those and the KittyKats.

[verbatim9]

I would call it a brand refresh. (Refreshed logo and lower case lettering). The pink pallet is being primarily used for the smart ticketing objective. While the lower case lettering with the refreshed singled coloured logo is being and will used on signage and other material as time goes on.....

[AnonymouslyBad]

^ I'd imagine the pink and blue will be used everywhere it's your standard corporate logo on a white background. Advertising, timetables, website, etc. Pink and blue are Translink's new logo colours, 100%.
Station signage is a different beast because a) it's so much more expensive to change than just the lettering; b) they only recently finished unifying it (barely); and c) it never had the same colour scheme anyway.

It's the website that's a really curious exception. I don't understand why they haven't updated it either. That's the stuff that's minimal cost and minimal effort to change, and no way do they consider the old logo "current" - it even looks dated.

[verbatim9]

New livery for the trains?

Created this in AI but the logo needs a bit of work. Ideally, this could be the best colour scheme, as a refresh branding for the trains.

[verbatim9]

Here is an additional render

[STB]

Would need yellow on the front of the train - Queensland Rail policy for safety reasons.

[SurfRail]

^ It isn't a legislative requirement (if it ever was) - just their own preference.  Virtually no other urban system in the country uses yellow cab ends - Perth never has, Adelaide and Sydney are moving away from it, and in Melbourne each new generation of train has less yellow on it.  I'd have to check but I believe the standard is only that high contrast colours be used, which does not require yellow.

[RowBro]

Would need yellow on the front of the train - Queensland Rail policy for safety reasons.

Even so, the livery could be updated to better match the rest of the translink branding. I think busses and ferries are the bigger priority for now. It's not like there are many private passenger trains on the QLD rail network to cause confusion (other than the long distance trains) and the GLink is an isolated system.

[Jonno]

Would need yellow on the front of the train - Queensland Rail policy for safety reasons.

Even so, the livery could be updated to better match the rest of the translink branding. I think busses and ferries are the bigger priority for now. It's not like there are many private passenger trains on the QLD rail network to cause confusion (other than the long distance trains) and the GLink is an isolated system.

BCC buses in particular.

[HappyTrainGuy]

^ It isn't a legislative requirement (if it ever was) - just their own preference.  Virtually no other urban system in the country uses yellow cab ends - Perth never has, Adelaide and Sydney are moving away from it, and in Melbourne each new generation of train has less yellow on it.  I'd have to check but I believe the standard is only that high contrast colours be used, which does not require yellow.

Bit of a long story how it came about. SMU200/220 and IMU100/120 had yellow fronts as part of the bronco corporate rebranding. All the brown from them (front and sides) was removed during the split rebranding now leaving all yellow. EMUs made the same transition during the mid-late 90's. It's not legislated but an external safety review recommend maintaining yellow fronts as part of further zero charm policies for higher visibility. Aurizon has similar polices in place for their network with all their locos going to all yellow cabs. Apparently they weren't happy with the red cabs on the new but not new 2900 locos. We have seen other internal and external reviews implement other stupid ideas such as painting everything on a platform yellow up until a certain height because someone walked into a post while on their phone or the amusing driver training psychiatric tests in response to the Banyo level crossing incident.

[RowBro]

Just in general, the clash between Translink branding and QR branding is frustrating. The busway stations have different platform signage than the train stations even though they'll soon be one 'integrated' station.

I also don't like the orange platform signage they are using now that it doesn't match the translink branding.

Don't get me started with the clash between BCC and the rest of the network though! From the stop signs (why can't we just transition to the one skinnier signage) to the bus liveries. Route prefixes and suffixes. Painful.

[HappyTrainGuy]

A lot of the design influences and variations come from TMR and the outsourcing of various parts of the project. Offsite fabrication also plays a part as we have seen with all projects across TMR.

Signage with BCC and TMR are different due to costs. Rather than have TMR/Translink be responsible BCC ends up absorbing that cost but and uses their in-house printing services and branding for their own promotion. We still have similar problems with TransLink not even being able to print timetables that fit QR timetable boards.

It's all a political shitshow really.

[hU0N]

Honestly, all the vanity branding just needs to go.  There's five common pieces of branding that every station should have, and they should be consistent across the board.  All these five things contribute to the legibility of the network in significant ways.


The most obvious seems to be the station banner. Usually installed on the lift shaft, or on a tall pole, it identifies the station from a distance and helps people find it.  But so many QR stations omit this sign.  Even new ones.


The one that does seem to be pretty consistently installed is the station flag.  It's usually installed on the nearest main road to the station entrance.  I don't understand why QR have to plaster their brand on it.  Other stations do just fine with the Translink logo on it's own, but minor quibble.


Next is the station name lightbox.  This is usually installed over the main pedestrian entrance to the platforms.  Except where it isn't - which is at the majority of QR stations.  Eagle Junction is the most egregious, because they've opted for a vanity sign reading "Queensland Rail" in illuminated letters over the main entrance where the station name should be.


Platform signage is probably the most unforgiveable.  Stations are busy, architecturally varied, and visually cluttered environments.  Passengers on trains have a mere couple of seconds to scan a platform as they arrive, find the sign and read the station name.  To help with this, the platform sign should be 100% consistent across all stations.  And it should include a large and easily recognisable logo.  Busways platform signs are on the right track but the lettering is too small.  QR signs are large enough, but suck in every other respect, looking nothing like other station signage, featuring a tiny translink logo, and being plastered with QR vanity stickers.  If you weren't a regular traveller, you'd be forgiven for thinking they are some kind of advertising or something else unrelated to the station at all.


Platform numbers are also important.  On the whole, these are done fairly well, except at older, unrenovated stations that have retained their maroon QR ones.

The problem I have is not that this branding takes time to roll out.  It obviously does.  The problem is that QR seems to consider almost all these elements of the translink brand as entirely optional.  Some new stations get some of it, and almost none get all of it (except for the stations built by TMR), but every single station gets a very solid frosting of completely irrelevant and useless QR vanity.

Also, the bus operators shouldn't have their own logos on the various buses.