Most artwork problems on the Underground are avoidable and expensive. This covers the specifications, the clearance process and the things that get work rejected.
Specifications
Every format has its own specification, and within a pack individual sites can differ. Confirm the specification for each site before artwork goes into production rather than designing to a generic size and adapting later.
| Format | Type | Creative size | Dwell | Indicative cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Digital escalator panels | Typedigital | Creative size1200 x 675 px | Dwell45 to 90 seconds | Indicative cost£25,000 per station run, per 2 weeks |
| Digital gateways | Typedigital | Creative size1080 x 1920 px | Dwell10 to 20 seconds | Indicative cost£12,000 to £40,000 per 2 weeks |
| Digital 6-sheet (D6) | Typedigital | Creative size1080 x 1920 px, 5 second slot | Dwell30 to 60 seconds | Indicative cost£1,500 per screen, per 2 weeks |
| Digital 12-sheet (D12) | Typedigital | Creative size1920 x 1080 px | Dwell30 to 60 seconds | Indicative cost£3,000 per screen, per 2 weeks |
| Digital 48-sheet (D48) | Typedigital | Creative sizeSpecification supplied at booking | DwellThe full platform wait | Indicative cost£2,000 per panel, per 2 weeks |
| Digital ribbon | Typedigital | Creative sizeSpecification supplied at booking | Dwell45 to 90 seconds | Indicative cost£35,000 per run, per 2 weeks |
| Tube car panels | Typestatic | Creative size580 x 200 mm | Dwell21 minute average dwell | Indicative cost£18 per panel, per 2 weeks |
| 16-sheet cross-track | Typestatic | Creative size2032 x 3048 mm | Dwell2 minutes 14 seconds | Indicative cost£2,250 per panel, per 2 weeks |
| 48-sheet posters | Typestatic | Creative size3048 x 6096 mm | Dwell2 minutes 14 seconds | Indicative cost£6,000 per panel, per 2 weeks |
| 12-sheet posters | Typestatic | Creative sizeSpecification supplied at booking | Dwell2 minutes 14 seconds | Indicative cost£2,000 per panel, per 2 weeks |
| 96-sheet posters | Typestatic | Creative size3048 x 12192 mm | Dwell2 minutes 14 seconds | Indicative cost£1,800 to £3,200 per panel, per 2 weeks |
| 6-sheet posters (paper) | Typestatic | Creative size1200 x 1800 mm | Dwell20 to 40 seconds | Indicative cost£1,750 per panel, per 2 weeks |
| 4-sheet posters | Typestatic | Creative size1016 x 1524 mm | Dwell20 to 40 seconds | Indicative cost£750 per panel, per 2 weeks |
| Escalator panels (static) | Typestatic | Creative size1016 x 1524 mm | Dwell45 to 90 seconds | Indicative cost£300 per panel, per 2 weeks |
| Station domination | Typepackage | Creative sizeBespoke pack | DwellThe whole journey through the station | Indicative cost£40,000 to £250,000 per station, per 2 weeks |
Copy clearance
Artwork is cleared before it goes live. Clearance checks the claim, the audience and the environment — an execution that is fine in a magazine is not automatically fine at eye level in a station used by children.
- Alcohol, gambling and financial promotions attract the closest scrutiny.
- Health, nutrition and medical claims need substantiation held and ready.
- Anything that could be read as targeting under-18s is assessed on placement as well as content.
- Comparative claims against a named competitor need evidence attached.
Designing for the environment
- Read the dwell time. Twenty seconds in a ticket hall is not ninety on an escalator, and the same execution rarely suits both.
- Contrast survives distance; fine detail does not. Cross-track sites are read across a track.
- One idea per site. A sequential escalator run is the exception — that is one idea across several frames.
- Legibility beats cleverness at 3am on a platform with a delayed train.
Sources and references
- Media owner rate cards — Every price on this site is indicative planning guidance pending verification against current rate cards.
