Safe Route
Tools used:
Figma, Miro, Justinmind,Canva
Forget navigating blindly! Safe Routes prioritizes safety. Explore urban areas with confidence by choosing routes based on well-lit paths, real-time crime data, and user-reported concerns. Unique features like multiple routes & with filters & features that makes you feel empowered to walk freely.
01. Project Overview
Role:
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UX Researcher
Team:
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1 UX Researcher
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2 UX Designers
Timeline:
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Jan 2024 to Present
Project Type:
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IPhone
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IWatch
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IPad
Problem:
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Existing navigation apps prioritize speed over safety, while concerns about crime and lack of safety data make people hesitant to walk, especially at night or alone. This combination discourages walking, a healthy and sustainable way to get around.​
Goal:
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This app tackles safety concerns that discourage walking (crime, lack of data) by prioritizing user safety in navigation. It empowers people, especially vulnerable groups, to walk confidently while creating a data platform for safer cities – promoting healthier living, less traffic, and thriving communities.
My Responsibilities:
Safe Walks, Empowered Users: Our Mission
Design an intuitive, engaging app that prioritizes safety, empowering confident walkers and building safer cities.
Key Roles:
User Champions: We champion your needs throughout design.
Safety-First Design: Clear info, easy navigation, and a safe interface at every step.
Constant Improvement: We test and refine to deliver the best experience
02. Understanding the User
Pain Points:
Persona: Sarah Jones
From user testing, personas were created to understand user needs and concerns, to prioritize safety,to make informed design decisions & to learn about the target market!
Empathy Map:
To Deepen our understanding of users,Identify and address pain points,Guide design decisions,Improve communication and collaboration and to Spark creative solutions Empathy map was created!
User Journey Map:
In urban environments, walking is often overlooked as a mode of transportation due to safety concerns. Existing GPS navigation apps prioritize speed and efficiency, often neglecting the safety aspect of routes.
03.Starting the Design
Crazy 8's:
Conducted a Crazy 8's session with designers! Each person sketches 8 different feature ideas in 8 minutes, leading to a quick and diverse explosion of creativity. These are my crazy 8's
User Flow:
A user flow was created for a smooth, focused user experience, to eliminate confusion, prioritize efficient journeys & to build what matters most & deliver value quickly & Identify pain points, iterate for excellence and to understand users to tailor the experience
Paper Prototypes:
Taking the time to draft iterations of each screen of the app on paper ensured that the elements that made it to digital wireframes would be well-suited to address user pain points.
Digital Wireframes:
As the initial design phase continued, I made sure to base screen designs on feedback and findings from user research.
Usability Study Findings:
Safe Route App: Usability Hiccup
Problem: Our app's safety filters are overwhelming users, causing anxiety and potentially discouraging app usage.
Symptoms:
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User feedback: "It makes me feel more scared!"
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Too many filter options lead to decision fatigue.
Root Causes:
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Information overload: Too many filters presented at once.
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Lack of prioritization: Unclear which filters are most important.
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Unclear labels: Filter names are confusing.
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Visual design: Information layout doesn't guide users towards safe options.
Impact:
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Increased anxiety and negative user experience.
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Reduced app usage if users find it too complex.
Refining the design:
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Simplify and prioritize filter options: Reduce the number of filters, group them by categories like "lighting", "traffic", or "crime data", and clearly label them for easy understanding.
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Implement default settings: Offer pre-selected "safe" routes based on common user preferences or provide contextual defaults based on time of day or location.
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Emphasize key safety indicators: Highlight the most important safety factors within each filter category and visually differentiate them for quick decision-making.
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Consider progressive disclosure: Offer advanced filter options only to users who actively seek them, preventing initial information overload.
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Provide guidance and tutorials: Develop in-app tutorials or explainer texts to educate users on using filters effectively.
After Implementing the user suggestion we made a presentation to the stakeholders to know their opinion on it and to improve it further!
Click here to view our presentation
After the Feedback and another round of user testing, We will be updating our app further more so stay tuned