Jock Kinneir and Margaret Calvert

Jock Kinneir (1917 - 1994) and Margaret Calvert (1936 - Current) were the designers behind one of the most effective informative design projects in British History. Whilst you may not recognise their names, you will most definitely recognise their designs for the UK’s road and motorway signage system which became a role model for modern road signage throughout the world.

Previously, Britain’s roads were accompanied by a mixture of signs, all commissioned by different bodies. This was well documented in a magazine at the time called Typographica. An article called “Mile-A-Minute Typography” sparked outrage as Herbert Spencer, the editor, drove a 17 mile car journey from central London to Heathrow Airport and photographed every sign he saw on the journey. Below are the pages from his magazine:

It appears that every sign used different typography, symbols and colours and proved how chaotic the British roads signs appeared to drivers. After his article gained large support for a redesign of the signage system, the Government entrusted Jock Kinneir and Margaret Calvert to undertake the challenge

Jock Kinneir

Kinneir was born in Hampshire in 1917. He studied engraving at the Chelsea School of Art, and after World War 2, Kinneir was employed as an exhibition designer by the Central Office of Information. He then transferred to the Design Research Unit, a design consultancy responsible for the iconic British Rail logo, and City of Westminster street signs. In 1956 Kinneir opened his own design studio and taught at the Royal College fo Art where he was in charge of the graphic design department.

Margaret Calvert

Originally born in South Africa, Margaret moved to England in 1950 where she studied at St Paul’s Girls’ School and Chelsea College of Art. During her time there, Kinneir asked her to help design the signs for Gatwick Airport, which would result in a lifetime of design between the two.

Work Together

Their first major commission was to design the signage for Gatwick Airport. He chose Margaret Calvert, a student at Chelsea School of Art, to assist him. Upon the success of this, P&O shipping company also asked them to design a baggage labelling system for them.

In 1957 Kinneir was chosen as the designer to produce signs that could be easily read at speed. They created a new typeface called “Transport”, based on Akzidenz Grotesk, and it was first used in 1958. Originally they were told to create signs for the British Motorway network, but following the success, the scope was broadened to review signage on all British roads.

The design schema they came up with largely influenced the protocol proposed by the 1949 UN World Conference on Road and Motor Transport.