York's pubs are going down the tubes.

And it is all down to one man - designer Jim Somerville.

He has created a new map of the city hostelries based on the London Underground map.

Mr Somerville undertook some painstaking research, visiting every pub within the city limits, before drawing up his unique York Overground plan.

Instead of tube routes, his coloured lines denote different pub crawls. They can be followed by foot or by bike, but not by car.

Drinkers can follow the Ebor line, the City Wall Circle, the Piccadilly or perhaps the Ouseside West line.

The map stretches from Skelton in the north to Bishopthorpe and Fulford in the south.

"I think we have got every pub on it," said Mr Somerville, 50. "There's something like 174 included.

"It's probably fewer pubs than most York people expected."

Has he a favourite? "They're all very good," he replied, diplomatically.

The idea first came to him when he was drinking in his home town of Pontefract. His original sketch was so popular that he realised his idea had commercial potential.

Calling his firm Slaphead Designs, he produced versions for Huddersfield and Hull before turning to York. Oxford and Newcastle are in the pipeline.

"I have always been fascinated with pubs and map-making. I thought I would try and combine the two," he said.

The York Overground map comes complete with the city coat of arms and York Brewery artwork.

It is on sale at York Brewery, Toft Green. A print costs £16.50 and a framed print £32.50.

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