Brief |
My teammates and I were tasked with creating a digital product for the CTA that can identify
slowdowns and problems, help riders find alternate routes through transparency, and offer flexible solutions help increase customer satisfaction. |
Diving into research |
Initially we wanted to explore what kinds of experiences CTA riders were having, who they were, and what their pain points are. We proceeded to embark on a journey full of questions, ideas, and iterations that gave us a lot of insights on what our users needed and how the scope of our project would be able to accommodate them.
We started off by doing some domain research on the public transit sector and the Chicago Transit Authority. From our research we found several issues that stood out the most: Last Mile Problem “I come in every day on Metra, but I struggle with the last-mile problem. Every time I go somewhere, I think, ‘Can I do it on transit?’ I throw up my hands sometimes because I know it’s going to be a $20 cab ride when I get to the station.” - Metra / CTA Rider Public-Private Partnerships to reduce # of cars on road "But to achieve truly integrated travel in Chicago, the city and private companies will need to move past their differences and collaborate." - Peter Skosey, Executive Vice President for the Metropolitan Planning Council. With transit issues being so vast, we started to anticipate that the scope we could solve for realistically would be the frustrations users deal with from the “last mile problem.” |
Competitor Landscape |
Google Maps is a comprehensive navigation service that offers satellite imagery and street views, real-time traffic conditions, and route planning for traveling by foot, car, bike (beta), and public transit. The trade off is the limited accuracy and lack of real-time information on unusual weather or road construction.
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Waze is a navigation app for drivers that is based on community-sourced information. The app gives clear alternate routes, turn-by-turn navigation, real-time alerts on nearby drivers, and traffic updates through user info sharing. However, the scope of transportation is limited to driving.
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Transit is a public transportation navigation app that shows real-time predictions and customized route guidance for public transit and ride services. However, there is no filter for transit and ride options, nor are there biking or ride directions in conjunction with public transit.
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User ResearchOur challenge enabled us to differentiate our product and have a competitive edge inherently based on the population we were serving. After identifying this fact, we wanted to see if our users, SMEs, and stakeholders would validate these needs, and how the interpretation of these features would change based on our findings. The primary goal was to identify the needs, motivations, goals, and frustrations of CTA riders.
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01
Being late is very uncomfortable and unpleasant. Traveling during peak hours accumulates stress. 02 Users aren't able to share information with each other due to the lack of communication between riders and the CTA. We found that users don’t know much about what happens when they are notified of delays, and the information is often not live, which keeps them from tracking their commutes accurately. 03 There is a fragmentation in the use of apps. Some users use a mix of transit apps/resources for different features. |
04
Users respond to delays in two ways. Wait it out or be proactive. 05 CTA has certain constraints that users are unaware of. There are ongoing socio-economical and political issues that create barriers for the CTA and challenge the means to improve rider satisfaction and service quality. 06 Users have an effect on transit just by using it. We found out that CTA ridership correlates positively with service frequency. When ridership goes up, the amount of trains and buses serviced goes up. |
What motivates
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We found out that riders are primarily motivated by cost-efficiency and convenience of taking the CTA. When they face frustrations from train crowding and delays, users will either respond with what is necessary or what they desire. Their desire for immediate access to transit status lies in the ability to make informed decisions for successful commutes.
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So who are our users? |
Concept 1: Live travel feed (nxt)
Provides delay details from users, CTA, Twitter, and a variety of posting abilities. The user can also proactively view and search alerts. Concept 3: Live Navigation Guide (navi)
Shows fastest routes in real time with step-by-step navigation and provides live delay notifications and alternate route options. |
Concept 2: Navigable delay alerts (raiL)
Users can view and report live delay alerts on the map powered by Google Maps API. Concept 4: Trip Planner (alt-L) Sends live notifications about delays, shows reports from other riders, and suggests alternate routes. |
Concepting Navi
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I developed the live navigation guide as a means of providing a familiar and proactive way for
users to receive delay information in real-time with alternate route options. |
We used metrics to gauge what users thought about the convenience and desirability of the app. 1 represented strongly disagree, and 5 signified strongly agree. Users generally found the concepts to be highly desirable and useful because of their ease of use and features.
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There were minor pain points such as verbosity or lack of proactivity from the product that users found to be inconvenient or confusing. We took these issues into consideration and iterated our converged designs.
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Autumn
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Derek
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01
Confirm users understand the overall goals of the app |
02
How easy is it for users to complete the following tasks? Viewing a notification Finding an alternate route |
03
What are the obstacles users experience during the tasks? |
04
Does the flow make sense contextually? |
01 Test more diverse pools of users with iterated prototypes. 02 Adjust and improve upon clarity of language to diverse contexts. 03 Explore the rest of the IA and build out screens for future features. |
04 Conceptualize more incentives for users through gamification. 05 Find ways to strengthen reflection of design principles in product. 06 Bridge alerts and alternate routes. |