In this excerpt from my 2012 short film, Olympic & Western: A Primer on the Typographic Order and an Argument for its Proper Usage in the Built Environment, I wonder about the color chosen by Metro for the then-recently-completed Expo Line, spanning from Downtown Los Angeles to Culver City.

The color in question – Pantone 2985 – seemed to be way too close in hue to the established color used for the Blue Line – Pantone 285. Imagine the confusion of winding up in Long Beach instead of Culver City. Someone finally noticed the absurdity of the similarity of colors between the two lines. Metro solved the issue by adding a distinct “E” to all Expo Line signage in mid-2015. However, with Phase 2 of the Expo Line opening up early this year, the train will go to the beach in Santa Monica, perhaps deserving a new name.

The solution should be obvious: the train to the beach should be color coded and called the Tan Line.