CASE STUDY

Sacramento Regional Transit

SacRT is the government agency responsible for public transportation in Sacramento, California and is of California's largest public transportation systems. They operate within a 440-square mile service area in the cities of Sacramento, Citrus Heights, Elk Grove, Folsom and Rancho Cordova.

SacRT celebrated 50 years of service in 2023 and to celebrate, embarked on a brand evolution journey. This brand refresh helps builds on that legacy, while also modernizing the identity. The first step in the evolution was to conduct relevant brand research to help guide my design process.

Deliverables

BRAND RESEARCH

Before diving into the exploration phase of the brand evolution, the SacRT Marketing team conducted a brand questionnaire that was given to internal and external audiences – we gathered thousands of responses from the general public as well as employees and board members.

The responses informed us that an overwhelming majority of the survey group had grown attached to the abstract logo symbol that had not changed for 50 years. So much so, that it would have been unwise to drastically change the logo symbol.

Positioning / strategy

Modern, innovative, and authentic. These are the founding values that I constantly referred to while leading the brand evolution project at Sacramento Regional Transit (SacRT). Before starting the evolution project, we all knew the brand was lacking cohesion, but more importantly, it was lacking soul. I made it my objective to make this brand feel as vibrant as it really is.

The public transportation industry is overwhelmingly cold across the board. To be a 'disruptor' within the industry, we simply had to show SacRT's humanity. From the bottom up, SacRT is all about the people. They provide thousands of jobs in the Sacramento Region and are striving to enhance the local communities they provide service to. Because of this, I knew we had to double down on the humanity and authenticity of our brand to convey that we are more than just another government agency that could be managed better.

EXPLORATION

The exploration of the logo began with the symbol. I knew it had to remain relatively similar to be recognizable to the original abstract logo, but I wanted to push it as far as I could to better serve the rest of the design system.

My exploration eventually lead to me developing an obsession for symmetry within the symbol. This resulted in various iterations of line-forward symbols in an effort to promote better visual balance. After months of exploration and testing, I had arrived at the perfect logo symbol. It felt more modern, more balanced, and allowed the symbol to be used more creatively within the new design system I would develop later in the process.

As the symbol became more refined, I began exploring typography solutions that would compliment the updated symbol and positioning. I was drawn to typography solutions that offered subtle personality and quirkiness, but overall remained clean and sophisticated. After careful consideration, geometric, wide bodied, sans serif fonts with subtle chiseled edges proved to be the clear choice for the logotype.

An expanded brand palette address numerous legibility concerns from the previous palette while also allowing additional flexibility and complexity.

The core colors consist of three shades of blue and marigold, along with a range of neutrals, and white.

WEBSITE & DIGITAL