Bus stops are usually a visual snore, built for function rather than form. But illustrator Peter Judson made these modest shelters the playful stars of his series, Bus, Stop and enjoy yourself.

‘My old studio used to be opposite a bus stop,’ the London-based artist says. ‘I’d watch people sitting under this grey utilitarian structure with it’s smashed up windows in the middle of a horrible rainy winter. It made me think about how you could design a shelter that kept you dry but could also bring a bit of joy to your mildly depressing situation.’

Inadvertently picking up where many a Soviet architect left off – UFOs, mini temples and giant eagles are just a few of the whackier examples in the former USSR – Judson’s outlandish designs are laced with a healthy dose of British wit.

‘A lot of my work focuses on the basic idea of making architecture have a bit more of a sense of humour,’ he says. Judson has produced a playful illustration for 31 of the city’s boroughs.

Reimagined as architecture playgrounds, his colourful designs are loaded with Postmodern, Memphis-like hues, patterns and forms. They also borrow elements from ‘unsung’ architectural heroes: shopping centres.

‘I wanted to give each bus stop an identity that relating to the area [they were in], and shopping centres – for reasons unknown to myself – are generally given a lot of freedom architecturally,’ he adds.

Take a look while you’re waiting for the number 55…

Read next: Christopher Herwig photographs space-age Soviet bus stops