LOS ANGELES, Sept. 3, 2024 ~ Los Angeles-based design studio, The Design Rules Company (DRC), is gearing up to launch their first product, Metroboard, a live subway map for the home. Founded by Kirill Safin and Emily Rock, who met while working in aerospace, the company was born out of their shared passion for public transit.

The idea for Metroboard came to Safin and Rock after the opening of the LA Metro Regional Connector, which was conveniently located across the street from their apartment. They were inspired to create a prototype for LA and fell even more in love with transit. This led them to expand their vision and create maps for five additional cities.

"Our project started as a celebration of what transit can do for a community," says Safin. "Now that we have easy access to Metro, we take it almost everywhere. I actually just sold my car, which feels almost heretical in LA. There's something really human about traveling with other people and experiencing a city in a person-sized and designed way."

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Metroboard is a tech-art piece that uses LEDs arranged in the layout of a city's subway system to indicate the location of trains in real-time. The data is retrieved directly from the respective city's transit agency and lights are lit to correspond to the color of the particular subway line. The maps are set to launch at the end of September 2024.

The design of Metroboard was inspired by a vintage CRAIG stereo from the 1970s that Safin and Rock had in their apartment. The board features a solid walnut frame with high-detail miter joints and an aluminum panel with holes for the LEDs denoting stations.

"We're just kind of tickled by walnut and aluminum in combination," says Safin. "They're beautiful and work well in so many spaces. It doesn't bring attention to itself, but when you look at it, you're charmed."

The rear panel of Metroboard has buttons to configure settings such as brightness, color, and update rate. DRC plans to expand their product line to include other US cities as well as major international cities in the future.

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To ensure the accuracy and authenticity of their maps, Safin and Rock embarked on a month-long cross-country trip via Amtrak to visit all six US cities where Metroboard will be available. They had the opportunity to ride all six systems, explore each unique city, and meet train enthusiasts along the way.

Metroboard will be available for order next month on Kickstarter. For those interested in purchasing one, DRC recommends placing a $3 reservation on their website (www.designrules.co). This reservation gives customers $80 off the full retail price of $229, for an early-bird price of $150. Additional perks for reservation holders include an exclusive souvenir, a "very cool" welcome letter in the mail, and priority shipping.

With their innovative product and dedication to public transit, DRC is poised to make a significant impact in the world of design and transportation.

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