August 13, 2014 – CHK America President and CEO, Rick Wood announced today that the company has been awarded the customer information design project for Valley Metro of Phoenix. The project includes the development of consumer-focused light rail and bus connection maps and Guide-a-Rides, as well as local neighborhood maps to support all connectivity and pedestrian wayfinding at Valley Metro’s Light Rail Stations, Transit Centers and Park N’ Rides.

CHK America will develop clear and concise customer information, utilizing their “Psychology of Wayfinding” philosophy. This unique, well-researched approach is proven to reduce a rider’s cognitive load and making it easier to navigate Valley Metro’s system of fixed routes, light rail, express and rapid bus service. Specifically, the new designs will incorporate the company’s Spider Maps®, which include color-coded routes and frequencies, key landmark symbols, and standardized wayfinding icons. As with all CHK America wayfinding programs, this project will align with the company’s proprietary “8 Second Rule,” which provides decision-making tools that help first-time and regular riders navigate the system with minimal confusion.

“Valley Metro is focused on enhancing the experience of our more than 230,000 daily riders. Through this partnership with CHK America, we will develop improved wayfinding signage that helps customers more easily and comfortably access our growing bus and rail system,” stated Hillary Foose, Valley Metro, Director, Communication and Marketing.

“Valley Metro is one of the most innovative agencies in the country,” CHK America President and CEO Rick Wood said. “By integrating improved wayfinding tools into the agency’s Light Rail Stations, Transit Centers and Park N’ Rides, leadership at Valley Metro is making a statement about the importance of providing a complete wayfinding system which enables customers to transition between transportation modes more easily and extensively.”

CHK, America – Established in 1999, CHK America is the premier best practice provider of customer information solutions for the US public transportation industry. The company’s 8 Second Rule, has set the standard for communicating complex public transit information to customers, after their research identified that customers allow only eight seconds in which to interpret travel information before becoming frustrated – resulting in customer dissatisfaction. Under the leadership of CEO Rick Wood, a recognized speaker of and the foremost authority in wayfinding strategies, CHK America now reaches over 2 billion, fully 20%, of public transportation customers in the United States. Between customized information design and purpose-built hardware fabrications, CHK America is providing solutions for many of the largest multi-modal transit agencies in the US from WMATA in Washington DC to DART in Dallas Texas, to LA Metro in Los Angeles, California.