Chris Norström on ui, ux, design, ideas, and storytelling.

I can’t tell you how many countless accidents have happened in my old neighborhood because of blind spots for left turners. When I lived near UCF in Orlando, Florida one small intersection would cause a traffic accident nearly every week. It happens when cars queued in U-turn or left turn lanes face each other in intersections and block each other’s view. Next time you pass one, look near the ground and you’ll usually see broken glass near many of them, even with traffic lights. And these types of accidents could all have been avoided if only someone had made one little change to the intersection’s design. Here’s the right way to design left turning lanes… read…

What’s up with the lack of art in our cities? Every time I go out I see nothing but ads, traffic signs, and concrete. It’s sad when the only art we can find in a city are poster and billboard advertisements. We’re already overwhelmed by hundreds of logos and ads on a daily basis. I wish for once I could see imagery without it telling me to buy something. And whenever cities do put up art it’s always some ugly painting by 3rd graders (sorry kids), randomly welded cloths hangers, or some abstract, LSD induced “random shape” art. All of which, unfortunately, look like doo doo in my opinion. read…

What if we could make sterile, cold, concrete, light rail stations a little more lively and human by allowing small-businesses to rent out little kiosks on the platforms of the more busier stations. Not only will this provide income to the transportation authority but it will also provide an extra set of eyes and ears (aside from security and cameras) and make the station feel more inviting and safer. Kiosks can be rented by the hour, day, week, or month to businesses or can be auctioned off to the highest bidder.  read…