AUG 21- MAY 2022 / MOBILE / B2C
Local Mobility - connecting riders to underused local transit options
I worked on Local Mobility with a small team of developers as a student at Cambridge University to tackle the need for transportation applications to accurately represent the diverse transit options available to riders that were reflected in popular navigation apps.
Role
Lead Product Designer
Timeline
Aug 2021- May 2022 (10 mos)
Core Responsibilities
Demo UI/ UX, Discovery Research, Information Architecture, User Testing
Problem
Helping cities better utilize investments in local transit while ensuring better experiences for public transit riders
Cities around the world are investing more in local, multi-modal transit options to make them more walkable, safe, and environmentally friendly. New transit come in many forms like scooters and van shuttles but are left out of navigation apps like Google Maps. This has left investments in local options underutilized. Local Mobility integrates local options with citywide systems using crowd-sourced data to give riders real-time information to improve their experience with new systems and .
World Resources Institute, ‘ 15-Minute Communities’ diagram
Solution
Building the ‘Waze’ for Public Transit, partnering with City DOT’s
The solution prioritizes ‘on the ground’ info crowd-sourced by riders providing real-time feedback back to the system to ensure riders with quality experiences when trying new systems. Historical data like how reliable a certain van shuttle is, or how safe a bus route is are reflected back to users. We also partnered with cities to accurately capture all local transit options, including elderly van shuttles, bikeshares, etc.
Home & Search Navigation
On the ground data in real-time
Schedule your rides with crowdsourced user data that provides real-time information
Ride Scheduling
Easy Ride Scheduling
Sync your ride plans with Google Calendar and get notifications ahead of your trip
Line & Stop Data
Historical data on new transit options
Assess the quality of the lines and stops by checking their reviews before planning your trip
Onboarding
Frictionless Onboarding
Click through only necessary permissions and terms and coniditions to start riding as soon as possible
Identifying users and their feelings on local options
Target Audience:
Younger, ages 20-40 years old, regardless of gender
Minimal driving in day-to-day life-some don’t own a car at all
Environmentally conscious
Baseline tech savviness
Interview Themes:
Issues with existing navigation apps
Trip planning using navigation apps
Awareness of local options
Awareness of nearby networks
Openness to trying new options
Discovery interviews, asking users their experience with new and old public transit
Synthesis
After conducting the interviews, I categorized the responses by affinity groups and consolidated the user needs into a single persona, Steven, who depends on public transit and navigation apps because he does not own a car.
People need more real-time info to trust public transit
Three major themes emerged from my research: (1) accessibility issues, (2) lack of engagement with local options, and (3) the need for transit network awareness. The following are insights and ‘how might we’ statements synthesized with these categories.
1. Accessibility
Real-time status of the system they are riding or else an app has little value. Communicating real-time data is critical to build user trust.
2. Engagement
Users don’t know the extent of new transit options available to them. Showing users new systems nearby and validating them through reviews sparks credible interest in them.
3. Network
A limited number of apps (Trafi, Citymapper) represent transit networks to users, and none show new options nearby. Showing nearby networks helps users engage with all the systems available.
Surveying competitors
Competitor Landscape
Real-time feedback or historical data not presented to users
We surveyed competitors of well-known apps that shape user expectations. Google Maps and Transit allow users to respond to surveys that provide data about the trip but do not present this information back to the user to inform their decisions at all. None of the apps represented the transit networks nearby on the map and only Transit integrated local mobility options into their service.
Information Architecture
Information Architecture
Nearby options shown first and in real-time
Local transit is highlighted on the navigation screen through the use of line cards that represent nearby options and provide headline information like arrival times, stops and final destinations. Both line cards and stop cards allow users to see crowd-sourced data to help them plan their journey. From the site map, I made (4) user flows that each touch user journeys of the app.
User Flow 1: Navigating a Ride
User plans a trip in a few minutes and leaves to get their destination
User Flow 3: Onboarding
User downloads the app and wants to get set up and start riding asap
User Flow 2: Scheduling a Ride
User needs to schedule a trip in advance and be notified beforehand
User Flow 4: Reviewing a Line & Stop
User needs to schedule a trip in advance and be notified beforehand
Ideation
Sketching
My initial sketches prioritize representing nearby transit immediately through a map and listing all options using bold transit cards. Users can find more data on a system by clicking on the cards
When I approached my users with sketches for guerilla testing, they thankfully had no problem interacting with the sketches and completing the task of scheduling a ride. They did have a few minor changes and wanted (1) a larger filter button so they could set their ride preferences while trip planning, (2) a notification banner before their ride arrived, and finally (3) more differentiation between the lines and stops on the navigation map.
Initial sketch with map, card and status update architecture
Initial navigation sketches, user flow diagram and comments used in a design review.
Wireframes
The mid-fidelity wireframes extended off the early validation of representing transit networks, an use larger UI elements, and white space to make the experience on new systems more clear
Style Guide
The design guide was inspired by the bold graphics of the New York transit maps designed by Massimo Vignelli. Simple, high contrast elements, the use of white space, and large navigation buttons make it accessible to users.
Iteration 01
In-transit Navigation
Identifying issues for the in-transit navigation flow, we created a series of navigation screens and modal to guide users during each step of their journey
Before
Users were confused by the lack of guidance throughout navigation
After
Guiding users during transit with steps, a navigation modal and completion screens gave them more confidence when using new modes of transit
Iteration 02
Onboarding
Responding to confusion on onboarding and sign-up, we updated the onboarding flow to reduce friction- streamlining signup and only requiring necessary permissions
Before
Users were confused by the number of prompts and signup options
After
Cutting down the number of steps to start using the asap was crucial for user engagement. So only providing the necessary permissions and no tutorial helped reduce friction.
Iteration 03
Scheduling rides
Users wanted a better experience when scheduling their rides in advance because they often depended on public transit for their work or school. So we linked scheduling with their personal calendars and set up reminders to help them remember.
Before
The original screen only provided users with a set reminder toggle
After
Our update allowed reminders to linked to a user’s personal calendar to set better reminders
Conclusion
Real-time information and transparency of crowd-sourced information helps user experiences. Apps like Google Maps and Transit use crowd-sourced data but do not present it back to users to help them in a direct way like companies like Waze. This component is what differentiates Local Mobility and adds value.
How do you motivate users to complete surveys consistently? Users do not want to complete a survey every time they ride transit, so the need to gamify the experience and incentivize engagement may be something to look at in the future.