Redesigning the Bike Share
Toronto Experience
Solo Project | Aug - Sep 2024 | User Research, Product Design, Interaction Design
Project Overview
How might we redesign the Toronto Bike Share app to enhance the end-to-end biking experience of frequent bike users & foster long-term loyalty and satisfaction?
In Toronto's fast-paced urban environment, Bike Share aims to offer a sustainable and efficient mode of transportation. However, the current Bike Share experience holds many issues, limiting user satisfaction and engagement. This project focuses on reviewing and re-designing the Bike Share app to enhance the product's value and it's customer experiences.
People are increasingly relying on Bike Share's services to get around the city.
Bike Share Toronto expects 6.2 million rides in 2024 with 9000 bikes available for bikers.
Cycling has rapidly become one of Toronto's fastest-growing modes of transportation. Bike Share Toronto, with its extensive network and 24/7 bike availability, is increasingly being used by residents for commuting, exercising, leisure, and more. Offering two annual membership plans as well as a pay-as-you-go option, Bike Share Toronto provides riders with flexible choices to suit their needs.
Despite ranking #4 in navigation (App Store), user satisfaction remains low at 2.5 / 5.
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Existing business objectives and constraints of the project.
Business Objectives
The following business objectives aim to elevate the Bike Share Toronto experience, drive revenue growth, and strengthen communication with users, fostering long-term loyalty and satisfaction.
Enhance customer satisfaction: develop an intuitive, user-friendly, and engaging biking experience that meets the various needs of all users.
Increase revenue: boost membership and minimise drop-off rates by reducing user churn through responsive customer support and a seamless user experience.
Expand communication opportunities: leverage branding and communication tools, such as push notifications, to engage users and keep them informed.
Project Constraints
The following constraints will be carefully considered in this re-design to adhere to timelines, ensure high user satisfaction and operational efficiency.
Budget Limitations / Resource Allocation: Ensuring sufficient funds are dedicated to the redesign, covering areas like user research, UI/UX design, development, testing, deployment, and ongoing maintenance.
Brand Adherence: Following established brand guidelines for colour schemes, typography, logos, visual identity and tone - may limit creative flexibility.
Time Constraints: Meeting deadlines for each design phase. Launching the re-designed app in sync with market trends and peak usage periods to maximise user adoption.
Prioritising commuters; Bike Share Toronto's core audience.
Secondary Research
Analysing online forums and conducting a survey to gather a broad range of user insights.
Insert persona + secondary and tertiary audience
Identifying problems within the current Bike Share Toronto app.
I conducted interviews with four Bike Share users during their commutes to identify the most common problems.
Part 1: I observed the beginning (getting a bike) and end (docking the bike) of users' Bike Share journey:
Park 2: I asked interviewees how they would get assistance if they faced an issue with their bike:
Research
Conducting a survey with 73 responses, I found that 75% of students feel overwhelmed by large tasks.
This is Amy. Amy is a student who relies on various management tools to organise her school tasks.
Despite this, she often feels overwhelmed when tackling them.
Conducting 8 user interviews, I found that while most students try to break down their tasks mentally, only 9.6% actually incorporate this into their organisational systems.
Like many of her peers, Amy attempts to break down large tasks into smaller, manageable parts, but she does this mentally rather than using her organisation tools.
To explore potential solutions, I interviewed a learning strategist at the University of Toronto. They introduced me to the concept of 'Chunking':
Chunking makes tasks less overwhelming: “Instead of trying to go through everything at once, they can keep in mind the different steps that they can take to get where they want to be eventually” - Learning Strategist
Chunking makes to-do lists more effective: "You can make to-do lists more effective by breaking down tasks into smaller tasks. For example: write paper ⇒ write introduction, make tables, etc."
Chunking helps supplement ones working memory: “By writing these steps down to an external resource, it off-loads a lot of that information onto the external resource, allowing them to save their cognitive capacity for actually working on the task”
A learning strategist recommends 'Chunking' as a solution to Amy:
"The idea behind chunking is to break down some of the larger tasks you have into smaller parts to an external resource."
3 out of 4 competitors do not have a feature for breaking down tasks; in order to understand existing competitors and identify opportunities, I conducted competitive analysis on 4 widely known and used time management / organisation apps.
The current market does not provide an organisational tool with 'chunking' as a feature.
Process
After multiple rounds of iterating LADDER, I conducted usability tests with 5 potential end-users. I observed the participants behaviour and listened to each participant think-aloud. This allowed me to easily identify which areas of LADDER users found confusing or frustrating to use.
Testing with 5 potential end-users to guide iterations.
Design Decisions
Design Decision 1
An example of an area that I iterated after usability testing was the tutorial - I shortened the number of pages the tutorial had and added a visual representation so that even users who skim through the tutorial can quickly grasp information.
Design Decision 2
I re-explored the design of the home screen as 2 out of 5 users had questions understanding the initial design. Through creating multiple design options and working with users, I decided to go forward screen outlined in red because (1) users preferred to know when they would be free through a message notification and (2) making all messages and suggestions from LADDER the same colour reduced confusion for users.
Solution
1. Sync your calendar to LADDER
By syncing your calendar, LADDER can provide you with suggestions on what to complete during your free time blocks - LADDER also provides rest blocks. Calendar blocks are white, chunks (smaller portions of tasks) are purple, and rest blocks are green. LADDER makes suggestions depending on deadlines and how long you are available for. LADDER will learn to be smarter as you continue to use it.
2. Add your tasks on LADDER
Create your to-do list by adding tasks on LADDER. If the task is similar to one you have completed in the past, LADDER will remind you how long it took to complete last time. All tasks come with red, blue, or green blocks, indicating urgency by deadline.
3. Break down your tasks into chunks
Choose to see chunks (smaller portions of tasks) that are yet to be complete, add new chunks as part of the larger task, or click 'view all' to see the task's history. By clicking on a chunk, LADDER will provide you with a timer, and you're ready to get started!