Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
Arts & Entertainment
Guerrilla Subway Stair Signs Help You Get Oriented In This Crazy, Mixed-Up City
By
Jen Carlson
Published May 7, 2015
Modified May 7, 2015
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
Jen Carlson
Published May 7, 2015
Modified May 7, 2015
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
(Photo courtesy of Ryan Murphy)
Coming up from the depths of the city's subway system can be a disorienting thing, like being spun around and around before hitting a piñata blindfolded. RISD student Ryan Murphy is the latest to tackle the issue, in a project he says will reduce that sense of disorientation upon coming up from the underground:
"After prototyping a variety of options, I installed semi-permanent directional signs in the stairs of the 86th and Lexington station. I'm hoping to do a few more along the 4,5,6 line—and also to publish a list of what signs would need to go in what stairwells as other people have reached out about making their own."
After a few attempts at placing the signs, Murphy says he found a more durable material, and these are "waterproof and stuck on using a type of permanent plexiglass tape." But will they help, or add to the confusion? While they may further disorient tourists, Gothamist's Ben Yakas declares, "For Men like me, who could be dumped in the wilderness and find his way back with only the sun as his guide, it is cool."
Tagged
disorientation
hack
ryan murphy
signs
subway
original
Jen Carlson
Jen Carlson is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE arts-entertainment
Inside a photographer's journey to visit every neighborhood in New York City
What do you see when you record the whole of the boroughs?
By
Sonia Rao
Published Oct 5, 2026 at 11:00 a.m. ET
Banned books and Winnie the Pooh: October in NYC libraries
It's a busy month at the branches.
By
Alec Hamilton
Arts & Entertainment
Banned books and Winnie the Pooh: October in NYC libraries
It's a busy month at the branches.
By
Alec Hamilton
NYC music in October: The Strokes, a Blink-182 cover band, and Polish experimentalism
By
Hank Shteamer
Are you a New Yorker? The Department of New Yorker Verification will now decide.
By
Hannah Frishberg
In the mood for a pastoral autumn experience? Try Queens.
By
Elizabeth Shwe
and
James Ramsay
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .