diff --git a/drb-frontend/app/globals.css b/drb-frontend/app/globals.css
index 5d35c6f..187e312 100644
--- a/drb-frontend/app/globals.css
+++ b/drb-frontend/app/globals.css
@@ -193,6 +193,13 @@ html:not(.dark) .border-indigo-800 { border-color: #c8ccf6 !important; }
   z-index: 0;
 }
 
+/* The legend floats above the map's stacking context, so it would cover the
+ * expanded layers list (both live in the right-hand column). Hide it while the
+ * list is open. */
+.relative:has(.leaflet-control-layers-expanded) > .drb-legend {
+  visibility: hidden;
+}
+
 /* "Dark" base layer (#136): the prod tile URL is bright OSM, so dark-theme
  * overlay cards sat on a bright, busy map. Inverting the raster keeps the
  * keyless OSM source (CARTO's dark_all CDN proved flaky, #117) while giving
diff --git a/drb-frontend/components/LiveView.tsx b/drb-frontend/components/LiveView.tsx
index 194a73d..e986a1d 100644
--- a/drb-frontend/components/LiveView.tsx
+++ b/drb-frontend/components/LiveView.tsx
@@ -560,7 +560,11 @@ export function LiveView() {
           {/* Degraded → grey the map and its incident rail (the rail lives inside
               MapView, so it is wrapped here rather than edited). */}
           <div className={`w-full h-full transition-[filter,opacity] ${health.degraded ? "grayscale opacity-60" : ""}`}>
-          {nodesLoading || callsLoading || !mapState ? (
+          {/* Mount the map as soon as its starting view is known. The 500-call
+              window took ~9s on prod and used to hold the whole map back;
+              calls and paths now stream in once it lands. Nodes are only
+              awaited when there's no saved view, since they pick the centre. */}
+          {!mapState || (!mapState.view && nodesLoading) ? (
             <div className="w-full h-full flex items-center justify-center text-ink-muted text-sm">Loading map…</div>
           ) : (
             <MapView
diff --git a/drb-frontend/components/MapView.tsx b/drb-frontend/components/MapView.tsx
index e6d95d3..d6e2de5 100644
--- a/drb-frontend/components/MapView.tsx
+++ b/drb-frontend/components/MapView.tsx
@@ -1620,6 +1620,9 @@ function MapView({
   const [wxShown, setWxShown] = useState(() => startLayers.has("wx"));
   const [radarLoop, setRadarLoop] = useState(false);   // off by default (#237); not persisted
   const loopClock = useMemo(createLoopClock, []);
+  // Short viewports (laptops, the 352px incident-page map) start with the
+  // legend folded to a chip so it doesn't cover the right side of the map.
+  const [legendOpenAtStart] = useState(() => typeof window === "undefined" || window.innerHeight >= 760);
 
   // The altitude key only belongs in the legend while the opt-in Aircraft
   // overlay is actually on (server-26#185); same for the outage key (#184).
@@ -1931,7 +1934,14 @@ function MapView({
       </div>
 
       {/* ── Legend — shape-first, both themes. Never a bare colour swatch. ──── */}
-      <div className="absolute bottom-8 right-3 z-[1001] bg-surface/90 border border-line rounded-lg px-3 py-2.5 text-xs pointer-events-none space-y-2 max-h-[calc(100%-4rem)] overflow-y-auto">
+      {/* Collapsible (one click to a "Legend" chip) and hidden while the Leaflet
+          layers list is expanded: the map sits in a z-0 stacking context, so the
+          legend at z-1001 used to paint over the bottom of that list. */}
+      <details open={legendOpenAtStart} className="drb-legend group/legend absolute bottom-8 right-3 z-[1001] bg-surface/90 border border-line rounded-lg text-xs pointer-events-none max-h-[calc(100%-4rem)] overflow-y-auto">
+        <summary className="pointer-events-auto cursor-pointer list-none select-none px-3 py-1.5 text-ink-muted font-medium text-[10px] uppercase tracking-wide flex items-center gap-1.5">
+          <span className="group-open/legend:hidden">▸</span><span className="hidden group-open/legend:inline">▾</span> Legend
+        </summary>
+        <div className="px-3 pb-2.5 space-y-2">
         <div className="space-y-1">
           <p className="text-ink-muted font-medium text-[10px] uppercase tracking-wide">Severity</p>
           {(["major", "moderate", "minor", "routine"] as Severity[]).map((sev) => (
@@ -2070,7 +2080,8 @@ function MapView({
             </div>
           ))}
         </div>
-      </div>
+        </div>
+      </details>
 
       {/* ── Incident overlay panel ───────────────────────────────────────────── */}
       {incidents.length > 0 && (