PROJECT OVERVIEW
Many students at the University of Florida live off-campus and rely on Gainesville’s Regional Transport System’s (RTS) busses to commute to campus and get around the city. Unfortunately, many struggle to understand and navigate the RTS bus system. Determining a bus route that aligns with students’ busy schedules can be stressful and overwhelming, especially for first time users. The current RTS bus app is confusing and unintuitive for users to navigate. Therefore, less people use the bus system for commuting in Gainesville.
Role
Design Process
Graphic Design
Project Background
PERIOD
March - May 2023
TOOLS
Figma
Adobe Photoshop
TEAM
Howard Le
Natalie Sesodia
Jackie Truong
Zhuoming Han
RESEARCH
User Interviews
Conducting interviews with 4 UF students, we pinpointed problems users face with the current RTS Bus app
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Difficulty in navigating the app to find route information
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Unreliability of real-time bus location
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Visual clutter and lack of appeal
Market Analysis
Weaknesses
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not specific to RTS bus system
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may have route inaccuracies
Strengths
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second option for students daily commute
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less likely for the mobile application to crash
Google Maps
Lyft
Strengths
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convenient for emergency situation
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smaller chance for the mobile application to crash
Weaknesses
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very costly for students and residents to afford on a daily basis
Uber
Strengths
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convenient for emergency situation
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smaller chance for the mobile application to crash
Weaknesses
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very costly for students and residents to afford on a daily basis
Stakeholder Map
After drawing the stakeholder map, we narrowed our target audience down to University of Florida students and local Gainesville residents who rely on public transportation for their daily commute.
DEFINE
User Personas
Kevin
Age: 20 years old
Occupation: Full Time Student at UF
Location: Gainesville, FL
Goals
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Conveniently go grocery shopping
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Easily go around town with friends
Frustrations
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RTS app not user friendly for foreigners
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Does not know how to navigate town
Harold
Age: 62years old
Occupation: Retail Store Employee
Location: Gainesville, FL
Goals
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Get to work on time by bus
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Visit friends/families around town easily
Frustrations
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Unsure how to navigate RTS bus app
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Construction, traffic, delays
Jane
Age: 19 years old
Occupation: Full TIme Student
Location: Gainesville, FL
Goals
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Get to campus efficiently
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Commute safely
Frustrations
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Off-campus student parking is too far from classes
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Parking decals are expensive
User Scenario
Meet Kevin! Kevin is an international student in his second year attending the University of Florida. He lives in an off-campus apartment building in Gainesville.
Kevin’s biggest struggle is transportation as he doesn’t own a car or live within walking distance to anywhere. Kevin relies on carpooling, ride-sharing apps and public transportation for everyday commuting.
The fall semester is starting soon, and Kevin needs a reliable mode of transportation to get to his classes on time. Kevin has seen the RTS buses on campus and around Gainesville, but is unsure of which routes would work for him.
Kevin finds the RTS Bus app, which is an app sole dedicated to the Gainesville RTS bus system. As a non-native speaker, Kevin is drawn to the app because of its intuitive design. He likes that notifications are sent to update bus’s real-time location.
It’s mid-way through the semester and Kevin finds himself not only using the RTS bus app for his daily commute to campus, but also for getting groceries and visiting his friends around town.
IDEATE
Product Goals
01. Redesign RTS app using standard minimalist mobile iOS design conventions.
02. Improve onboarding experience for new bus-riders/app users
03. Improve clarity and presentation of route information
Design Requirements
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Real- time map incorporating user location with route progress updates
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Ability to ‘Favorite’ multiple routes
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Ability to set “Home” Location
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Search via destination
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Names & numbers for stop locations
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External consistency with minimalist design standards
Application Map
DESIGN
Branding & Style Guidelines
Wireframes
Preliminary Testing
Our team conducted initial user testing with the first version of our prototype to gather more in-depth feedback from potential users. Some feedback we received is as follows:
Participant A
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User reported app to be overall intuitive to navigate
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No major pain points reported in the app navigating
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Suggested to add more colors and icons for distinction
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Suggested to get rid of the individual profile section because they did not see a purpose or use to it other than the part of changing one’s home location or favorites
Participant B
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Overall found the wireframes clear and easy to navigate
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Suggested to have pop-up notifications when watching a route in real-time
High Fidelity Mockup
Prototype
TEST
User Testing
Participant A
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Asked about interface "showing warning regarding construction/road closure/event operation/sport games"
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Interface for login/signup needed
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Adhere color to the gator color scheme more
Participant B
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Include option of “inbound” or “outbound” for the bus route, would be easier for user
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Overall interface is logical, just need to polish on small details
Participant C
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“App functions really well and I can navigate it very intuitively. Wish it was more visually appealing with colors.”
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Wants functional filtering by favorites and home feature
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Perhaps include a moveable map.
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Confused on “Home filter” button
Participant D
Should have a stops shown real time map and show which bus routes go to that bus stop
Really likes the newer design but wishes it was less grey
Confused on purpose of Profile section
Would like to see a “Recent/Previous Routes” to avoid re-searching for routes.
Would prefer to use this version over the current RTS app
Final Thoughts and Evaluation
The revised RTS bus app was positively received by colleagues, faculty, and interviewees. Despite this, there are still areas for enhancement in information delivery and overall design to better represent the UF and Gainesville community. We aimed to create an intuitive and user-friendly app for all users. With more time, we believe we can successfully achieve this goal by continuing the project for another semester.
The RTS bus app has the potential to be a highly convenient and reliable transportation option for Gainesville residents. By enhancing the app, RTS could potentially boost its ridership among all Gainesville residents.