Brief
Client
ORCA Card wants to reduce the number of cars on the roads and become more environmentally friendly by getting more people to use Seattle public transit for their daily commute.
Deliverables
Mobile Prototype
Stakeholder Presentation
UX Methods
Interviews
Competitive & Comparative Analysis (Feature Inventory, Pluses/Deltas)
Feature Prioritizations (MSCW)
Affinity Mapping, Insight Statements
“How Might We” Statements
User Flows, Sketching
Wireframing
Prototyping
Usability Testing
My Role
UX Co-Researcher, Co-Designer
Our team collaborated on almost all aspects of the design process. I was in charge of certain aspects of the research process, detailed in this case study.
Team
Alex Hertz
Cecile Elliott
Sarah Pitts
Duration
2-week sprint
Jan. 2021
Tools
Notion
Miro
Figma
Problem
“I love my ORCA card - I just hate reloading it.”
Seattle commuters like the convenience of tapping their card and where they can go using the card, but must navigate a frustrating, non-responsive site to reload funds.
Then they have to wait 48 hours for the funds to be available on the card and have no way of checking how much is on the card.
Proposed Solution
How might we make it so you don’t have to reload your card at all?
By creating an automated, digital card that bypasses the need to reload funds, and by giving riders the ability to view their account and ticket status, Seattle commuters will have peace of mind.
Card users will be able to have:
visibility into their account
instantly available funds to pay the fare
a fast, easy way to tap in
With a digital ticket, there will be an ORCA card in the hands of every Seattleite with a smartphone.
Covid-19 Considerations
An added benefit of a digital card is fewer touchpoints throughout the public transit system. This will help improve public health during and beyond the pandemic.
Project Vision
Quality Product With Quality Learnings
Our team decided that not only did we want to create a creative solution, but also we wanted to continue learning about all the steps of the design process. We delegated some of the research but then worked through the proceeding steps altogether. This made for long hours but resulted in a high-quality deliverable.
When we began working together, we knew nothing about the Seattle public transit system or the people who used it regularly. We found out that Covid-19 has completely affected people’s use of public transit, but people still spoke fondly of the system overall.
We learned there were a couple of ways to address friction in a traveler's journey by updating ORCA’s digital interfaces. We started with the idea of reloading your card funds on a mobile device, but it evolved into a digital card that didn’t need to be reloaded at all.
Design Activities and Deliverables
Research
The Business: The Ins and Outs of Mobile Transit
I led a comparative and competitive analysis of several transit apps and websites to fully understand the digital presence of the industry.
We discovered that users expect certain features and functionalities from digital transit products such as Uber and Ventra (the Chicago transit card.)
To synthesize, we prioritized features using the MSCW method - must, should, could, won’t.
This led us to identify necessary features like account management, instant digital payment, and mobile navigation.
The People: The Busy Commuter
We identified our target users through zoom interviews, a survey, and affinity mapping.
We discovered that our users:
are on-the-go young professionals
are tech-savvy and are used to paying for things through apps
want some meditative alone time during the commute
want to avoid waiting in-line at the kiosk and potentially missing their ride
We developed an archetype based on this research to help guide our design decisions.
We found that ORCA competitors were all utilizing mobile design and when reloading their cards, users preferred in-person to online.
Design
Concept 1: Mobile Reloading
How might we automate reloading?
Because our users found friction reloading their cards, we began to ideate solutions around a mobile product using automation to reduce the need to reload the card entirely.
Concept 2: Avoiding Reloading
How might we avoid reloading at all?
While ideating around our first concept, we evolved our thinking into how we might eliminate reloading the card at all and render physical kiosks obsolete.
We came up with the idea of using a mobile phone with a digital ORCA card, instead of a plastic, physical card.
Testing: “I Wish I Had This Right Now”
We tested the usability of our design with four different people to produce these insights:
Notifications were either overwhelming or very helpful
It reminded them of an airport boarding pass
Concern if their phone died
Final Product: The Digital Orca Card System
The new design features a trip tracker and ticket status, as well as pop-up notifications to ensure a successful transit ride.
Visual Guidelines: New Blue
To modernize the look and feel we updated brand colors to brighter tones, added stylized typography, and designed a new logo.
Prototype
Results & Reflections
Results: You’re Tapped in!
Users were successfully able to complete tasks like “tapping” in, checking trip status, and accessing digital ticket confirmation for fare enforcement officers.
Next Steps: A Solution For Everyone
Our next step would be to better consider accessibility, with increased color contrast and by adding features to customize notifications to include vibrate, sound and visual.
Reflections: Teamwork & Timeboxing
As we looked at something, we each brought a unique perspective in asking how we can improve the experience of public transit.
One thing that helped keep us on track was timeboxing certain exercises, so we could all still bring our insights without getting too off schedule.