CVSR Edu-Trainment Car

Interactive Signage in a Railroad Car

What is believed to be the nation’s first interactive children’s museum on tracks, the Edu-Trainment Car is a project meant to entice visitors with children to ride the rail through Ohio’s only National Park, Cuyahoga Valley.

Now a nonprofit, the Cuyahoga Valley Line began operating around 1880 and continues to run today. What makes this project special is the use of a refurbished California Zephyr, a sleeper turned coach built in 1949 that is 85 feet long, 12 feet wide and 8 feet high.

Exhibit Designer Karen Katz and Graphic Designer Nikki Machado worked closely to design the Edu-Trainment Car in coordination with the railroad, the park, the Akron Children’s Museum and Hale Farm and Village. ASI was brought on-board to bring the client’s vision to life.

About the Solution

All signage needed to be installed before the first voyage within a few months from the date of consultation. ASI worked quickly to ensure the designer’s vision could be properly translated and interwoven into the interactive space.

The Edu-Trainment Car features a myriad of eye-catching signage displays with intriguing information about Cuyahoga Valley National Park. All elements are carefully secured to the train car, as the ride is typically 26 miles long at up to 25 miles per hour.

A main feature of the design is a digitally printed, galvanized steel map that is 24 feet long and 2.5 feet high with surface printed magnets that could easily be moved to traverse the map.