I first discovered Edward Tufte’s The Visual Display of Quantitative Information more than a decade ago, and I’ve been a big fan of his work ever since. I work mostly with words, but in daily life try to keep an eye open to good design.
gooddesign
I came across a graphic design example at my neighborhood post office, in Paris. It’s a sign posted outside, next to the entry door. It’s in French but, I think, easily understood by those who don’t speak French.
The sign marries two kinds of information:
  • First, the sign tells you when the post office is open: Monday through Friday from 8:00 to 19:00 (7:00 pm), and Saturday from 8:00 to Noon. I like how boldface type has been used for opening, closing, and Noon, with the line demarcating morning and afternoon (and, incidentally, informing the viewer that the afternoon is comparatively longer than the morning).
  • Second, the sign tells you when the post office is crowded, and when it’s not. The sign does this with color, using the familiar colors of a traffic light: red, orange (in France, a “yellow light” is actually orange), and green.  In short, going to the post office at the end of the day is a bad idea, because the post office is busiest. The best time to go to the post office is at the middle of the morning or the afternoon. Incidentally, Thursday seems to be the quietest day at the post office.
I also like the overall tone of the sign. Its title suggests that customers can choose when they come to the post office, and offers information to help them make that choice. (Looking at the sign, my impression is that customers can change their behavior more easily than the post office can modify its staffing.) Long lines are avoidable, not a fact of life; the glass is half full, not half empty.

Naysayers might voice accessibility issues for the colorblind or the use of the yellow background (yellow is the color of the post office in France, particularly for letterboxes, like red in the UK or blue in the USA). I’d be interested to learn whether or how these issues were considered at the French post office, but for me the drawbacks are outweighed by the clarity of the traffic light color scheme.

The sign takes the form of a metal plaque. It was built to last. But I can’t help but wonder whether postal customers will modify their behavior based on the sign’s information. If they do, will the post office measure changes and revise the sign? I hope so.