For many, air travel is a distressing experience. The possibility of delays and cancellations coupled with the trepidation of security checkpoints is enough to swear some off of flying altogether. And if you don't know how to get from Point A to Point B, the exploit becomes even more confusing and dreadful. Intuitive wayfinding — information that allows people to effectively and efficiently orient and navigate themselves through a space — is crucial to a positive user experience. Once you know where you're going and when you need to be there, you're afforded greater personal control over your journey. Wayfinding is effectively conveyed through the instruments of signage. An assumed element of any transportation hub, it's easy to take the presence of signs for granted. We put our trust in the accuracy of the information presented to us without thinking about the work that went into fashioning the system behind it. But in speaking with Toronto-based Entro Communications, it becomes clear just how much empirical and evidence-based research is required to ensure people understand what is communicated to them.

The sleek exterior of the new International Terminal, image by Jason Dziver via Entro Communcations

Entro Communications has worked on defining the wayfinding and placemaking strategies for multiple transit facilities around the world. The company has been involved in Toronto's Union Station Revitalization and Pearson International Airport, Vancouver International Airport, Ottawa International Airport and Singapore's Marina Bay Sands and Changi Airport. With an impressive catalogue of work under their belt, Entro has armed themselves with the tools necessary to comprehend how people interact with their spatial surroundings. So when Calgary International Airport (YYC) embarked on a $2 billion Airport Development Program (ADP) that would produce Canada's longest runway and a new International Terminal, Entro was brought on to create a cohesive visual language for the space.

Concourse naming before the expansion, image via Entro Communications

Officially opened to the public on October 31, the two-million-square-foot new International Terminal adds 24 gates and two concourses — D and E — to serve international and United States-bound flights respectively. Doing so required calculated changes to the existing terminal, particularly the numbering of the concourses. The preexisting 'A', 'B/C,' and 'D' concourses that comprised the airport's only terminal — which now serves domestic flights — had to be renumbered in 2014. The airport initially had plans to initiate any expansions northwards, but they changed direction, deciding instead to extend the footprint of the airport eastwards. The WestJet gates at Concourse D became A, with the Air Canada gates in Concourse A becoming part of Concourse C. Rejigging the concourse naming meant that the wayfinding for the entire existing terminal had to be updated. 

The new layout; Gates 70/71 and 72/73 serve multiple concourses and destinations, image via Entro Communcations

The ADP allows for future expansion of the facility aligning with the master plan vision. To ensure the old terminal fit seamlessly with this plan and matched the precedent set by the new building, the existing terminal gate numbers were renamed. Instead of numbering the gates consecutively around the perimeter of the pier, the system arose from the inside, with gate naming staggered in a fashion not unlike the odd-even numbering method on a typical North American street. The system was implemented to avoid confusion, which is especially important given how dynamic the gates are. Some of them are able to be used domestically, internationally, and for transborder service. Gates 70/71 and 72/73 for example provide service to Canadian, United States, and international destinations. 

Future expansions could create 'F' and 'G' concourses, image via Entro Communications

To understand the scope and deliverables of the development, Entro engaged in extensive pre-construction reconnaissance work. They collected feedback from airport staff and passengers in a variety of ways, including direct interviews, which helped the team discover problems and primary pain points. Through simple observation and people-watching, Entro was able to discern whether passengers understood the information presented to them in a fairly quick way. They conducted flow studies and determined where signs should be placed based on spatial limitations and the size of the letters. "We had to anticipate how people would move through the terminal," said Senior Associate Gord Mactaggart. "There's an almost mathematical way of being able to determine the ideal position of placing things. It's all rooted in a very scientific approach."

Gate displays before and after, image via Entro Communications

The gate display information, where the passenger would gather information about their flight, was described by Entro Partner Wayne McCutcheon as "cluttered and unclear about hierarchy." The former displays put superfluous emphasis on the branding of the airline instead of more pertinent information like the destination. Entro conducted a series of studies that track eye movement across a graphic and predict the path your vision will take. As the most important items of information people are seeking, Entro's reimagined gate displays create a focal point around the gate number and destination.

The call-to-gate system eliminates the clutter of boarding areas, image by Entro Communications

The gates themselves employ neutral silvers and whites that offer contrast to the traditional bright blues and yellows of the original terminal. Like a supermarket checkout, the gates signal passengers when their flight is boarding by illuminating big, bold type on disc-shaped signage. The highly legible and avant-garde appearance of the gates helps create a better sense of presence for passengers, who can easily see the signage from the end of the piers. As an international airport, YYC signage needs to reflect the reality that not all passengers navigating the space are fluent in English or French. To help break through any persistent language barrier, Entro employed numerous pictograms that push past the physical constraints of the sign. With the gate number and accompanying pictogram the most prominent items on the sign — distilling it down to the fewest number of elements — the pertinent information takes centre stage. 

Pictograms and bold typeface provide greater clarity, image via Entro Communications

As the wayfinding system serves to provide clarity to the passenger experience, there's a clear delineation between the practical assistance that the signs provide and the retail branding that also proliferates the terminal. In general, wayfinding discourages brands and advertising, and any such reference to designated shopping and dining areas typically entails generic language such as "food services." Instead of intrusive overhead signs, freestanding directories alert passengers to the services provided by retailers. It's here that retailers are given the opportunity to have their say. Keeping wayfinding separate from advertising avoids confusion and brings a certain level of predictability to the space.

As construction continued on the new terminal, the existing concourses had to phase in changes. A transitional wayfinding system was initiated to ease in elements of the new terminal. Temporary signs — which were in use until construction finished — were installed by an army of people literally overnight. If the changes hadn't been completed by the next day, a patchwork of cluttered and contradictory signs would leave passengers befuddled.

Construction of the new International Terminal is captured in a satellite image, image via Entro Communications

These transitional alterations didn't just occur inside the terminal. Since the gate numbers were being rearranged, pilots landing the planes needed to be informed. "It's a super complicated thing because pilots are also given handbooks in the plane so they know where the gate is," said McCutcheon. "Come midnight, the gate switched, so the pilot handbooks needed to be changed." Then there's the countless number of back-end tweaks to ensure that accounting and financial information reflects the adjustments. But despite the interim headaches, the shift was "fundamental for that experience, allowing passengers to go seamlessly through the final condition."

Before the opening of the new terminal, a series of trials was conducted. About three to four thousand members of the public were invited to come through and explore, testing everything from the wayfinding to the security and baggage systems. Entro was smack dab in the middle of it. They asked passengers about their experience and any potential frustrations, allowing Entro to "hone in on initial assumptions and make sure what we put out there was in line with what we expected," said Mactaggart. As with any project, Entro conducted a "post-mortem" with YYC to internally understand if the results were in line with their expectations.

A satellite view of the airport, image retrieved from Google Street View

Unique to the airport is the call-to-gate system for international and United States departures. Passengers are able to rest and enjoy the amenities of the grand departures hall before heading to their gate for boarding. Conveyed via the hall's large digital displays, passengers are assigned a gate number at least 60 minutes before takeoff. The concept essentially removes the isolation of the waiting area huddled around each gate, giving people a reason to converge together and indulge in the airport's shopping, dining, and entertainment facilities. In centralizing the experience — a dramatic reconfiguration of the way space is used — the footprints of piers are reduced, redundant seating is eliminated, and the efficiency of boarding is increased. With all gates located an approximate five-minute walk from this central waiting area, there's no worry about missing your flight.

Layout of the newly expanded airport, image via YYC

Though call-to-gate is used in many airports around the world, including London Heathrow, Calgary is pioneering the system in North America. Though McCutcheon acknowledges there's going to be an "initial learning curve," the system's inherent revenue-generating opportunities will likely entice other airports to adopt the call-to-gate practice. The approach is not unlike the systems used in multi-modal transit hubs across Canada, particularly Toronto's newly opened York Concourse at Union Station, which consists of a central retail hall outfitted with bright display information that notifies passengers of their gate as the train pulls in.

Inside the new International Terminal, image via Entro Communications

With modern airports providing passengers with so many different ways to check in, there's an increased focus on streamlining the front end of the system in order to get through security as quickly as possible. Once through, the passenger is welcomed with multiple retail and food and beverage destinations. "It used to be about getting through all that stuff in the front end," said McCutcheon. "But the more efficient you make that stuff in the front end, the more you need to make that retail hub a reason to come to the airport."

Building and testing prototypes, image via Entro Communications

If airports are keen on emphasizing the lifestyle services they have to offer, Singapore's Changi Airport has mapped out the blueprint to follow. Their massive pre-security retail experience will be housed within a biosphere-like structure spanning ten levels. With a waterfall and dense foliage bringing the outdoors in, the new complex will amplify an already-entrenched destination within the city. In a testament to its popularity, busloads of people from Malaysia will travel to Changi to enjoy its shopping and leisure offerings, then fly out to other cities from here instead of their local airports. "Airports are leveraging the retail experience to make it a destination that can then drive their air traffic," said McCutcheon. Mactaggart added that trip decision-making can be influenced by the services airports offer. Instead of mindlessly searching the web to pass time during a layover, game-changing experiences can alter the prevailing perception of airports as unglamorous, utilitarian facilities.

YYC LINK transports passengers through the terminal, image via YYC

Though it can seem insignificant at first glance, especially to those rushing through a space, YYC's wayfinding system is supported by a rigorous methodology that ultimately empathizes with the user experience. The business of wayfinding is generally unappreciated — we expect signs to guide us through the unfamiliar, yet we rarely think of the science behind the signage. It's a visual art form that's inherently at odds with one of the primary purposes of art — to envelop you and provoke a reaction. While wayfinding graphics need to be bold and attractive enough to command attention, they don't want loitering eyes; they should be succinct and explicit enough to facilitate traffic flow. The longer someone seeking guidance gazes at a sign meant to provide clarification, the worse job it does. So, the time spent looking at a sign is an indicator of success or failure. The balance between creativity and functionality is a tough one to get right, because too much creativity can distract from the message meant to be conveyed. By adhering to best practices and paring down information to the least of its parts, the new International Terminal communicates the essentials within a modern and streamlined framework. 

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