CapMetro

User Research • Usability Study

Duration

3 Months

Graduate Course

Usability

Role

UX Researcher

Tools

Figma, Figjam

CapMetro is Austin’s regional transportation provider, and serves over 25,229,400 riders per year. From bus, para-transit services, and rail systems, this public transportation provider serves as an integral part to Austin’s infrastructure.

Using the CapMetro app, users are able to purchase bus and rail fare, view bus arrival times, and plan a trip to and from a destination.

This project focused on evaluating the usability of the CapMetro mobile app through in-depth research. By conducting heuristic evaluations, competitive analyses, and participant interviews, we uncovered key strengths, identified areas for improvement, and highlighted opportunities to enhance the app's design and functionality. These findings aim to improve the overall user experience and better align the app with the needs of its target audience.

Overview

Process

Through a research-driven approach, we aimed to evaluate and analyze CapMetro’s overall usability.

Audit

Research

Analysis

Recommendations

We began with an audit of the CapMetro app. By conducting a heuristic evaluation, we were able to understand what challenges the app is currently facing and discover potential solutions.

Heuristic Evaluation

We identified several issues facing the app:

  • Match Between System and Real World - the app fails to use familiar language that a user would expect to see when on a transportation app, especially when it comes to purchasing tickets/bus fare.

  • Consistency and Standards - layout of certain elements change when viewing from different entry points.

  • Aesthetic and Minimalist Design - Instead of focusing on the most important information, the app requires users to navigate through multiple steps to access essential or expected details. It prioritizes providing all available information over emphasizing what is truly necessary.

Challanges

Recommendations

After our evaluation, we identified some key recommendations for CapMetro:

  • Tabs that are similar can be combined. The language and icons used on the app should meet users expectations by introducing more familiar language.

  • Use a single consistent design and layout for components on different tabs to ease users cognitive load.

  • Prioritize important information. Create a more minimalist interface that does not require users to do extra, unnecessary. steps.

We conducted a competitive analysis, comparing CapMetro’s app to both direct and indirect competitors to assess their features and user experience. Using our heuristic findings as a guide, we identified the strengths and weaknesses of each competitor. Some areas we focused on included:

  • Convenience and availability of an interactive and visually engaging route map.

  • Overall ease of use, including for product selection and checkout process.

  • User friendliness and consistent design throughout the interfaces.

  • Geographic availability for user convenience.

Competitive Analysis

Research Design

Screened participants utilizing an 18 question survey. Participants demographics included:

  • Mix of age and gender.

  • Living in the greater Austin area.

  • Mix of those with CapMetro app experience and those without.

Recruitment

  • Six moderated in-person usability tests.

  • Users were asked to complete seven task scenarios on the CapMetro app.

  • Applied a think-aloud protocol to gather users thoughts, feelings, and opinions towards the app.

  • Participants actions using the app were screen-recorded on a smartphone. Audio and video recordings of the participant was also taken.

Research Methods

Interview Structure

The test was conducted over four sections:

  1. Four pre-test questions to understand the users background.

  2. Seven usability tasks to evaluate the CapMetro app flow.

  3. Post-task questions after completion of each task.

  4. Eight Post-Test questions to evaluate users overall thoughts of the app.

Task Flow

We utalized the qualitative and quantitative data we collected to assess users interactions with the CapMetro app:

  • Task success rate (Success, Partial Success, Partial Failure, Failure)

  • Time-on-task

  • Post-task difficulty scale (measured after the completion of each task)

  • Post-test likert scale

From this evaluation, we synthesized our data through affinity mapping and statistical analysis to find commonalities and to provide actionable and impactful recommendations. Additionally, we developed a user persona and mapped out the user journey to illustrate their experience during the usability test.

Analysis

Our evaluations led us to several findings.

  • The task of finding a route to H-E-B and navigating to the bus stop had the two highest time-on-tasks.

  • The task of navigating to the bus stop only had 2 out of 6 participants completely succeed.

  • During the post-test survey, 4 out of 6 participants agreed they would not use the CapMetro app frequently, and were confused by the labels used throughout the app.

Findings

After thoroughly analyzing our findings, we uncovered key insights:

  • There are multiple different ways to perform each task, often resulting in unnecessary clutter within the app and confusion regarding the specific pathways the user should take.

  • Some essential functions feel “hidden” in the app and only findable by expert users, such as finding the map view of a route and directions to get to the closest bus stop.

  • The ticket-purchasing flow is lengthy and requires additional steps, and knowledge of ambiguous terminology in order to purchase the correct ticket.

  • Labels were especially confusing for the participants, and sometimes were too similar that they offered no clear distinction between them.

Insights

These insights led us to our final recommendations:

  • Create simple, clear pathways for the user to take in order to complete each major task within the app.

  • Prioritizing the map view so users can access it quickly. In addition, the app can providing a quick tutorial when user’s first start exploring the app so these features are highlighted to the user.

  • We recommend simplifying the ticket-purchasing experience by having all prices and ticket options listed on one screen, and shown before needing to create an account.

  • Consider combining similar functions to reduce confusion. Additionally, we recommend simplifying information and highlighting key features to ensure clear and easy navigation.

Recommendations

Takeaways

Laying the Groundwork: Beginning with a comprehensive heuristic evaluation and competitive analysis allowed us to identify initial strengths and weaknesses of the CapMetro app.

Usability Testing: The ideal participant mix can be challenging to achieve. For future tests, incorporating a more diverse age range of participants would provide valuable insights into a broader spectrum of user experiences.

Diverse Data Collection and Analysis: Incorporating both quantitative and qualitative methods like affinity and journey mapping, provided a more comprehensive understanding of our participants behaviors and experiences.