As an urban planner, I recognize how physical design and external factors contribute to effective transportation. While public transit offers access to an abundance of essential resources for diverse populations, outdated navigation systems remain a significant barrier for communities. As a ux designer, I realize these challenges can hinder the integration of public transit into daily routines, emphasizing the need for modern, user-friendly solutions to enhance the commuting experience.
HopLink is a personal passion project created with a friend to aims to address the gap in our transit journeys by improving accessibility and convenience.
mobile end-to-end | passion project
HopLink
Simplifying public transportation with seamless, accessible, and modern public transit solutions.
overview
Improving access, modernizing transit navigation
Ironically, transit is hard to navigate
There is a gap in accessibility and convenience with public transportation particularly evident in an outdated ticket purchasing process and challenges in obtaining information on schedules and real-time updates through different platforms.
How might we design a compelling system that encourages regular public transportation usage by addressing the diverse needs and preferences of commuters?
Our goal is to modernize and elevate the public transit experience. The result is a reliable and accessible application that not only addresses these gaps but also transforms the way people interact with and benefit from public transportation.
Our goal is to modernize and elevate the public transit experience. The result is a reliable and accessible application that not only addresses these gaps but also transforms the way people interact with and benefit from public transportation.
Solving physical problems through a digital means
Hoplink is designed to reimagine the commuting experience, making it not just efficient but also a seamless and pleasant part of our everyday lives by consolidating all factors of the public transportation experience.
Here’s a peek into our key features:
Here’s a peek into our key features:
Effortlessly navigate your journey, ensuring a seamless and stress-free travel experience.
Streamline your commute with the convenience of digital tickets at your fingertips.
Stay informed on-the-go with timely notifications, ensuring you're always updated.
It's more than just a platform; it's a comprehensive solution designed to enhance and simplify your journey through public transportation.
research
Understanding user pain points
We created a survey about user experiences when accessing transportation services. The survey got over 35+ responses with a main demographic of ages 18-24. From our survey, we got the following results:
81%
use cards as their main method of payment for public transportation
use cards as their main method of payment for public transportation
68%
are discouraged from using public transit due to unreliable schedules
are discouraged from using public transit due to unreliable schedules
68%
use mobile apps to stay updated on transit information
use mobile apps to stay updated on transit information
54%
are discouraged due to a lack of covenience
are discouraged due to a lack of covenience
What impacted our users?
We conducted individual user interviews with university students who use public transit daily and have worked in the transportation sector. By conducting these interviews, we gained a deeper insight on the struggles users and workers face. Below are some quotes from two users:
By synthesizing the research and interviews conducted, we established four key pain points users face with public transportation:
Effortlessly navigate your journey, ensuring a seamless and stress-free travel experience.
Streamline your commute with the convenience of digital tickets at your fingertips.
Stay informed on-the-go with timely notifications, ensuring you're always updated.
Mapping out the journey
We created a customer journey map to empathize with the users' thoughts, feelings, and journey to the app. We wanted to pinpoint their pains and gains to understand the opportunities our app could address.
Outlining user pain points
Using our research as a guide, we created user personas to ensure we addressed the user pain points.
ideation
Visualizing the user interactions
With our goal set and pain points in mind, we created an information architecture to lay out the key features and the flow.
product development
Sketching the features
We then created low fidelity sketches to visualize the features and interactions.
Building out the application
Creating the branding
To ensure a seamless visual experience throughout the application, we created a style guide. The objective was to strike a balance between friendliness and trustworthiness. It was important to consider the accessibility of our colour palette, as well as creating a memorable mascot.
usability testing
Understanding the current state...
To understand how users would interact with the prototype, we did a think-out-loud testing session with 5 users ranging from 16-25 years old. They had a set of tasks to complete and were interviewed after to gain feedback on the design.
Their insights were then categorized into themes based on their struggles on an affinity map. This allowed us to focus on the main issues and sections users were having.
Their insights were then categorized into themes based on their struggles on an affinity map. This allowed us to focus on the main issues and sections users were having.
Below are the common struggles users faced during the usability testing session:
Confusing user flow
Poor interaction experience
Poor visibility in UI components
Lack of context
Visual clutter and long copy
We organized the feedback into three sections: What was done well, what to improve, and what actionable changes we could make.
Below are the consolidated actionable changes to improve the application:
Providing context through instructions
Improve CTA visibility through size, colour, typography, and placements
Enhance verbiage to indicate clear sections and purpose
Iterate the interactions and user experience
iterations
Complicated ticketing payment process
Saving locations and routes
final design
Features
Start your journey
HopLink ensures an informative onboarding experience, allowing users to familiarize themselves with key features and generate excitement.
Users can proceed to log in or sign up to begin their journey with HopLink.
Users can proceed to log in or sign up to begin their journey with HopLink.
Hop onto transit
HopLink curates a secure personalized experience utilizing your location, facilitating effortless navigation to your desired destinations, be it school, work, or home!
Stay updated
Stay in the loop with our real-time updates and notifications, keeping you informed about any alterations to bus schedules, routes, and delays.
It’s your ticket to convenience, delivering timely information that adapts to your on-the-go lifestyle, making your journey even smoother.
It’s your ticket to convenience, delivering timely information that adapts to your on-the-go lifestyle, making your journey even smoother.
Simple transactions
Say goodbye to the hassle of traditional payment methods, HopLink ensures that fare transactions are not only simple but also seamless.
Whatever payment method you prefer, HopLink simplifies the payment process, catering to your specific preferences and making every transaction a breeze. Manage your fares effortlessly and focus on the journey ahead.
Whatever payment method you prefer, HopLink simplifies the payment process, catering to your specific preferences and making every transaction a breeze. Manage your fares effortlessly and focus on the journey ahead.
Earn rewards for your loyalty
HopLink celebrates your commitment! Unlock exclusive deals as a heartfelt token of appreciation for your steadfast ridership. Immerse yourself in special rewards and perks that bring an extra layer of joy to your frequent journeys, making your loyalty an even more rewarding experience.
With HopLink, your loyalty is not just acknowledged – it's celebrated!
With HopLink, your loyalty is not just acknowledged – it's celebrated!
Effortlessly personalize your journey
With HopLink, personalizing your commute is a breeze! Save your favourite locations and routes, tailoring your transit experience to suit your preferences. Enjoy the convenience of easily accessing the places you frequent most and the routes you prefer, making every journey uniquely yours.
Transit, tailored to you
Hop on board with a profile that tailors your transit experience! Customize your settings and refine your preferences and details. Your HopLink profile reflects your unique style on every journey. Craft your transit experience effortlessly!
Reflection
🔎 Enhancing without overcomplicating
During the development of HopLink, I discovered that adding a few extra features didn't necessitate a complete overhaul of the digital transit process. It was essential to follow the familiar paths that users were comfortable with. Attempting to add extra "pizzazz" to our UI initially made it overly complicated and less user-friendly.
🛠️ Iterate, iterate, and iterate more
User interviews and testing sessions proved to be game-changers in refining our designs. Direct conversations with users and observing their interactions with the interface offered crucial insights, uncovering pain points and areas of confusion. By analyzing this feedback, we simplified our design, streamlined features, and ensured that each decision enhanced the overall user experience. This iterative process allowed us to create a product that effectively met users' needs and provided a seamless experience.