Talking Headways Podcast: Color Your City Outside the Lines
This week I'm joined by cartographer Gretchen Peterson to talk about mapmaking and her new book, City Maps: A Coloring Book for Adults. We discuss why she made the book and why she chose the 40 city maps she included in it.
By
Jeff Wood
1:53 PM EDT on June 23, 2016
This week I’m joined by cartographer Gretchen Peterson to talk about mapmaking and her new book, City Maps: A Coloring Book for Adults. We discuss why she made the book and why she chose the 40 city maps she included in it.
Listen in and hear from Gretchen about the art of cartography, including the importance of color, fonts, good data, and whether you have to be a designer to make maps. We also get into why maps are important in reports, maps we might regret, as well as tips for future cartographers. Enjoy.
Jeff Wood is the creator of the Talking Headways podcast and editor of the newsletter The Overhead Wire.
Read More:
More from Streetsblog USA
How DC’s Mayor and Council Chair Thwarted Every Effort to Better Its Streetcar
There are two reasons why D.C. doesn't have the streetcar system it was promised — and their names are Mayor Muriel Bowser and DC Council Chair Phil Mendelson, one urbanist argues.
March 26, 2026
An Ounce of Prevention Is Worth a Pound of Thursday’s Headlines
There's so much the U.S. could have done to insulate residents from spiraling gas prices, other than suspend taxes.
March 26, 2026
Why Cities Need More ‘Agile’ Streets
When projects are routed through a full capital-improvement workflow, solutions tend toward expensive, permanent interventions — not alternatives that might achieve 80 percent of the benefit at 10 percent of the cost.
March 26, 2026
Wednesday’s Headlines Feel Pain at the Pump
High gas prices are likely to persist, and people will be driving less in response.
March 25, 2026
D.C. Advocates Sue To Save Key Bike Lane From Trump Teardown
We previously reported that the Trump administration might soon move to dismantle key cycle tracks in the nation's capital. Unfortunately, we were right.
March 24, 2026
Comments Are Temporarily Disabled
Streetsblog is in the process of migrating our commenting system. During this transition, commenting is temporarily unavailable.
Once the migration is complete, you will be able to log back in and will have full access to your comment history. We appreciate your patience and look forward to having you back in the conversation soon.