Symbol Signs
The complete set of 50 passenger/pedestrian symbols developed by
AIGA is available for all to use, free of charge. Signs are
available here in EPS and GIF formats.
Additional symbol signs are available free of charge at The Noun Project.
Download the complete set of Symbol Signs (ZIP archive, 377 KB)
About the symbol signs
This system of 50 symbol signs was designed for use at the
crossroads of modern life: in airports and other transportation
hubs and at large international events. Produced through a
collaboration between AIGA and the U.S. Department of
Transportation (DOT), they are an example of how public-minded
designers can address a universal communication need.
Prior to this effort, numerous international, national and local
organizations had devised symbols to guide passengers and
pedestrians through transportation facilities and other sites of
international exchange. While effective individual symbols had been
designed, there was no system of signs that communicated the
required range of complex messages, addressed people of different
ages and cultures and were clearly legible at a distance.
To develop such a system, AIGA and DOT. compiled an inventory of
symbol systems that had been used in various locations worldwide,
from airports and train stations to the Olympic Games. AIGA
appointed a committee of five leading designers of environmental
graphics, who evaluated the symbols and made recommendations for
adapting or redesigning them. Based on their conclusions, a team of
AIGA member designers produced the symbols.
A first set of 34 symbols was published in 1974, and received
one of the first Presidential Design Awards; 16 more symbols were
added in 1979. These copyright-free symbols have become the
standard for off-the-shelf symbols in the catalogues of U.S. sign
companies. They are now available on the web for the first
time.
AIGA Signs and Symbols Committee members:
Thomas Geismar
Seymour Chwast
Rudolph de Harak
John Lees
Massimo Vignelli
Designers:
Roger Cook and Don Shanosky
Execution:
Page, Arbitrio and Resen, Ltd.
Project coordinators:
Don Moyer and Karen Moyer
Mark Ackley and Juanita Dugdale