Christie Lee

Introduction

EcoMotion

An interactive hub designed to enhance the bus stop experience.

*This project was a part of the University of Washington's Human Centered Design and Engineering (HCDE) MS program

CONTENT

SKILLS

Product Design

Prototyping

Usability Testing

User Interview

ROLE

Project Manager

Designer

Researcher

TIME

3 months (2024)

TEAM

3 HCDE Students

CONTENT

SKILLS

Product Design

Prototyping

Usability Testing

User Interviews

ROLE

Project Manager

Designer

Researcher

TIMELINE

3 months (2024)

TEAM

3 HCDE Students

THE PROBLEM

Transportation is one of the leading contributors to greenhouse emissions in the U.S., and accounts for 60% of emissions in Seattle. Despite there being many public transportation resources available in the Seattle metropolitan area, many individuals still rely on their personal vehicles for their commute.

Eco-friendly transportation includes walking, bus, scooters, bicycles, or even ferries.

THE QUESTION

How might we create a product that prioritizes safety and community, while making eco-friendly transportation more appealing to Seattle commuters?

THE PROBLEM

Eco-friendly transportation includes walking, bus, scooters, bicycles, or even ferries.

THE SOLUTION

Redesigning the bus stop to create an experience that prioritizes safety, reliability, and community connection.

EcoMotion is an interactive bus stop kiosk that provides the user with important information related to their commute. With real-time bus tracking, alternative route suggestions, safety services, and crowd-sourced local recommendations, users can spend time exploring the kiosk while they wait for their bus to arrive. By transforming a key part of the bus riding experience, users can feel more encouraged to choose more eco-friendly means of transportation for their regular commute.

ALL IN ONE

A home screen that displays all the necessary information and access to additional services.

ALTERNATIVE TRANSPORTATION

Connected to Lime to provide alternate means of transportation to shorten the commute.

SAFETY

On-demand security guards available for both in-person and virtual assistance. 24/7 surveillance installed with every kiosk.

COMMUNITY

Crowd-sourced local business recommendations and reviews close to the bus stop to explore Seattle.

ALL IN ONE

A home screen that displays all the necessary information and access to additional services.

ALTERNATIVE TRANSPORTATION

Connected to Lime to provide alternate means of transportation to shorten the commute.

SAFETY

On-demand security guards available for both in-person and virtual assistance. 24/7 surveillance installed with every kiosk.

COMMUNITY

Crowd-sourced local business recommendations and reviews close to the bus stop to explore Seattle.

ALL IN ONE

A home screen that displays all the necessary information and access to additional services.

ALTERNATIVE TRANSPORTATION

Connected to Lime to provide alternate means of transportation to shorten the commute.

SAFETY

On-demand security guards available for both in-person and virtual assistance. 24/7 surveillance installed with every kiosk.

COMMUNITY

Crowd-sourced local business recommendations and reviews close to the bus stop to explore Seattle.

KEY INSIGHTS

FASTER TRAVEL TIME & BUS RELIABILITY

Users feel frustrated from bus delays, long waits at transfer stops, and inaccurate bus schedules on map applications, which leads them to seek alternative modes of transportation.

My ideal commuting experience would be if the busses were on time and my maps app accurately reflected the ETA

SAFETY

Users tend to avoid commuting by bus at night, especially by themselves, due to concerns over their safety.

Safety is the number one reason why I don't use public transportation. I hear too many stories and I'd rather drive to not worry about it.

FLEXIBILITY

Users choose driving over public transit when they need schedule flexibility or must make multiple stops, as complex bus transfers complicate errand-running.

When I'm running errands, it's easier to drive than worry about multiple stops and carrying all my items.

USER RESEARCH

Understanding the general sentiment around commuting and people's thoughts on being climate conscious.

We conducted a combination of user surveys, interviews, and experience sampling with a focus on commuters aged 21 to 40 living in the Seattle metropolitan area — the demographic with the highest rate of single-occupancy vehicle use.

My ideal commuting experience would be if the busses were on time and my maps app accurately reflected the ETA

Safety is the number one reason why I don't use public transportation. I hear too many stories and I'd rather drive to not worry about it.

When I'm running errands, it's easier to drive than worry about multiple stops and carrying all my items.

DESIGN PRINCIPLES

Hover me!

#1 ENHANCE USER ENGAGEMENT

Create interactive and engaging elements at the bus stop to improve the waiting experience and keep users occupied while they wait.

#2 IMPROVE COMMUNICATION & INFORMATION

Ensure real-time updates, bus schedules, and important announcements are clearly communicated to users for better planning and awareness.

#3 PRIORITIZE SAFETY & ACCESSIBILITY

Incorporate features that enhance security and accessibility, while also ensuring seamless connection with safety authorities to foster a safer and more inclusive environment.

THE DESIGNS

Narrowing the scope to focus on one key part of the commuting experience: waiting at the bus stop.

Narrowing the scope to focus on one key part of the commuting experience: waiting at the bus stop.

We were given the challenge of designing a solution that was not in the form of a mobile application nor a website. This encouraged us to explore physical solutions, leading to our design of an interactive bus stop kiosk. Our primary goal was to design an experience that would make waiting at the bus stop more enjoyable, while addressing both our users' concerns and accessibility issues.

Early concept: AI Bus Assistant

INITIAL WIREFRAMES

I was responsible for designing a service that would show users alternative modes of transportation to shorten their commute in addition to the home screen. In the original design, we envisioned the kiosk to be an AI assistant where the user inputs a question about the bus schedule, safety resources, routes, and local recommendations and the AI assistant would answer the users' questions or redirects them to the appropriate resources.

REDESIGNING THE LIME FEATURE TO IMPROVE VISUAL HIERARCHY

Placing the QR code at the bottom made it difficult for users to notice that feature. To make it more prominent, we highlighted it in a contrasting color and designed it as a pop up so it would be the first thing users see when they choose a Lime scooter.

MID-FI WIREFRAMES

Pivoting ideas to better suit our users' needs.

After initial usability tests, we decided against the use of an AI chat as users complained of spending too much time to find simple information and typing on a large kiosk screen would be cumbersome. As a result, we pivoted to include screens and features that required little to no typing from the user to navigate.

ITERATIONS

Usability test results guided our revisions.

Further usability tests helped us identify new pain points with the change in our screen designs. Based on these results, we were able to edit our designs to improve accessibility, visual hierarchy, and navigation aspects of the kiosk.

MAKING IT CLEARER TO NAVIGATE BETWEEN PAGES

Having the page navigation at the bottom made it easier for users to miss. The redesign showed new screens as a pop-up, allowing users to return to the home screen by clicking anywhere outside of the pop-up window.

IMPROVING ACCESSIBILITY

Initial designs placed buttons at the top of the screen, which would be difficult for individuals to reach, introducing a potential accessibility barrier. In our redesign, we were intentional with our button placement, ensuring all important features would be easily accessible on the screen.

In the physical kiosk design, we added braille-labeled buttons and instructions, a screenreader function, and tactile navigation buttons on the panel to allow users with visual impairments to still interact with the kiosk. Additionally, we surrounded the bottom surface of the kiosk with tactile tiling to make it easier for users to navigate to the kiosk.

Speaker

Activate screen reader

Next Section

Back - Enter - Next

Last Section

Volume up and down

SOS

Speaker

Activate screen reader

Next Section

Back - Enter - Next

Last Section

Volume up and down

SOS

Speaker

Activate screen reader

Next Section

Back - Enter - Next

Last Section

Volume up and down

SOS

"Welcome! This kiosk supports screen reader features for enhanced bus tracking, alternative transportation options, safety tips, and local recommendations. Tap the button below to activate the screen reader."

Tactile tiling surrounding the kiosk

Tactile tiling surrounding the kiosk

Tactile tiling surrounding the kiosk

FINAL DESIGN

After rounds of iteration, we finally created our final interactive prototype to improve the bus riding experience and encourage a more eco-friendly means of transportation.

RELIABILITY & FLEXIBILITY

The home screen displays the statuses of buses through live tracking, with the ability to change preferred languages. Users can also check alternate modes of transportation to find a faster route with other means of eco-friendly transportation. A QR code was made available to send the new directions, along with the Lime app, to the user's phone for convenience.

COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT

The community section allows users to explore local businesses near the bus stop through crowd-sourced recommendations. It serves as an additional activity for users to input their own recommendations and explore recommendations while waiting for their bus to arrive.

SAFETY

A dedicated safety section allows the user to request assistance at the bus stop by either requesting a security guard to or through an on-call system. In addition to this, there is also an added SOS button that users can use in case of an emergency. Finally, there are security cameras integrated into the kiosk to ensure 24/7 surveillance.

FINAL PROTOTYPE

Navigate the screen with your cursor

Restart by typing

R

Open larger version

REFLECTION

I was challenged to design with two layers of constraints: the physical challenges of large-scale public interfaces and the infrastructural problems that shape the entire user experience.

TAKEAWAYS

REDESIGNING FOR A PUBLIC SPACE

Users are hesitant about entering private information in public spaces, especially when displayed on a large screen. Instead of requesting sensitive information for directions, like a home address, we provided general information, while offering a seamless transition to their personal device for further customization.

PHYSICAL DESIGN CONSIDERATIONS

Unlike mobile or desktop experiences, a bus stop kiosk introduces new physical constraints, such as its larger screen, that can create new barriers. We designed our screens while considering button placements that would be accessible for users of varying heights and abilities.

DESIGNING AROUND INFRASTRUCTURE LIMITATIONS

This project showed me that designing for public systems means working within constraints you can't control. We couldn't fix traffic delays or mechanical breakdowns, but we could transform how users experienced them. By providing transparent communication, alternative routes, safety services, and engaging wait-time content, we turned systemic problems into opportunities for better user support.

Let's grab a coffee!

cjlee99@uw.edu