The Pequonnock River Trail is 16 mile multi-use linear trail that runs from Bridgeport through Trumbull to Monroe in Connecticut and was planned by MetroCog thorough a coordinated effort with municipalities and the state. MetroCog’s GIS team worked consultatively with a graphic designer to customize its GIS processes to create a vector file that is easy to stylize in Adobe Illustrator so that a print map could be produced. Through trial and error, the team found keys to GIS setup that are now utilized for any product for which a print map will be produced in the future. The team also setup a dynamic interactive storymap for use on the trail’s website. This presentation provides and overview of what was discovered and how to customize any map setup in GIS to produce similar results.

1. Trail of Two Maps
Mark Goetz, GISP
Mark Hoover, GISP

2. Agenda
• Overview of trail
• Tips and Tricks for enhancing “paper map” in Adobe Illustrator
• Creating Shortlist Story Map

3. Pequonnock River Trail
• 16 mile multi-use trail from
Bridgeport through Trumbull to
Monroe
• Located along the path of the
abandoned Housatonic
Railroad Line

4. Mapping the Trail
• MetroCOG provides GIS support for 6 member municipalities
• Two mapping products
• Static “paper map”
• Use on website
• Handouts
• Story Map
• Interactive
• More Information

5. Static Map
• 8.5in x 11in
• Informative but readable
• Engaged graphic designer to enhance map with Adobe
Illustrator

6. Tips and Tricks for Adobe Illustrator
• Through trial and error we found several methods to create an
easier product for use in Adobe Illustrator
• Found several helpful websites
• http://www.bgcarto.com/importing-an-arcmap-export-in-illustrator/
• http://www.bgcarto.com/some-tips-on-map-layout-exporting-a-map-to-
illustrator/
• http://www.wwu.edu/huxley/spatial/tut/cart/argis_2_illustrator.htm

7. Tips and Tricks for Adobe Illustrator
• No Transparencies
• No Rasters
• Use Annotation!
• Limit adding text in layout!
• Use different color for each layers label
• Keep symbology simple
• Remove outlines from Polygons
• Dissolve features when possible
• Limits the number of individual pieces that need to be altered
• Group features
• Groups in ArcMap are grouped in Illustrator

13. Shortlist Story Map
• App organizes points of
interests into tabs
• Tabs update as user moves
around the map
• Template is not available
through ArcGIS Online
• Download template and host
on web server

14. Shortlist Story Map
• https://storymaps.arcgis.com/en/app-list/shortlist/tutorial/
• Use sample files as template to configure point layers that define
your tabs
• Shapefile or CSV
• Populate fields for text and images
• Load points directly into Web Map
• Save Web Map
• Copy the Web Map ID into the index.html file at appropriate location
• Copy template download onto web server
• Configure CSS/HTML files for personalization

16. Shortlist Story Map
• Cannot support
• Rasters
• Services
• Feature Classes
• Can load rasters
as basemap

17. DEMO

18. Thank You!
Mark Goetz
GIS Director
MetroCOG
mgoetz@ctmetro.org
Mark Hoover
GIS Technician
MetroCOG
mhoover@ctmetro.org