BRANDING FOUNDED IN RESEARCH
To create a transit brand that would resonate with Northern New Mexicans and feel authentic to the region, Studio Six worked with more than 50 community stakeholders in four branding discovery sessions. The goal of these sessions—to identify community attributes that people of all ages, ethnicities, and communities value most about the region.

CRAFTING THE STORY
Consistently we heard that North Central New Mexicans hold a deep appreciation for the cultural diversity of the region. They value the life-giving land; are awed by the dramatic, ever-changing sky; and are drawn to the region that is vast, majestic and geographically diverse. Based on these insights, we developed a brand that is so different yet so authentic to North Central New Mexico.

HEART & SOUL
Santa Fe, also known as “The City Different” is located in the North Central RTD service region. Our goal was to capture the personality— the heart and soul of the region—and to design a brand that is radically different than other transit systems around the nation. To do this, our creative team integrated the concepts identified in the multiple stakeholder sessions into a cohesive user experience—from the fleet, to the maps, to the on-demand app branding. Unlike most transit brands that feel corporate and sterile, we introduced textural, organic qualities, Native American motifs, regional languages and designed a signature font for North Central RTD that unites the brand and its products and services.

EFFECTIVE BRANDS EVOLVE
North Central New Mexico is home to one of the most culturally diverse populations in the country comprising of eight Native American Pueblos, one Apache Nation, Latinos, Anglos and more than 80 nationalities working at Los Alamos National Lab. The region is a cultural fusion of diverse ethnicities, languages, lifestyles and traditions. To celebrate the diverse cultures of the region, the word “blue” is integrated into the fleet branding featuring the most prominent languages of North Central New Mexico.

HISTORY IN THE MAKING
Tribal leaders supported the integration of their native languages (Tiwa & Tewa) into the new transit design. We are honored to showcase these sacred languages and celebrate the native populations of the region.

CREATING AN EMOTIONAL CONNECTION
The verbal components of the brand are equally important to the visual components of a brand. The tagline, “Keeping Our Air Clean and Sky Blue,” connects with the values of local residents who place the utmost importance on protecting the environment and air quality.