Orchestrate the city to create a more efficient, unified, and tactic system
Duration /
Nov 2022
(4 weeks)
Type /
Individual Project
Skills /
UX research
UX design
UI design
Problem /
Car Parking is a major problem in urban area. New Yorkers have been spinning their wheels trying to find appropriate street parking spot in the metropolis. Not only did car ownership increase, but the pandemic's effects on the streets also reduced the number of street parking spaces.
107 Hours
people spent on searching for a parking space per year in New York City.
$565 M
value of parking tickets per year in New York City.
Product Preview /
Enable the Parking Mode
Arrive the Parking Spot
Be Informed to the available spot
Check or Extend the Parking Status
Pay for the Parking Fee
Field Study/
Shadowing and Experience Mapping
I go through each step of the parking process in order to fully comprehend the issue. To accomplish this, I chose to shadow three volunteers as we drove to a congested area. For the purpose of identifying the various stages of their parking experience, I visualized the entire journey from beginning to end.
Stages of the parking journey
Travelling
Leaving Home
Searching for a Spot
Outing Over
Found a Parking Spot
Going Back to Car
Experience Map
After outlining the many phases and crucial steps, I sat down with my volunteers and asked them about their experiences with the parking process. In order to pinpoint the most urgent pain points, I combined all of their experiences into one comprehensive experience map.
Insights/
People use Google Maps and Parking Meters during every stages of experience journey.
After participating in the process of seeking parking places for the interviewers, I discovered that they had used various products to assist them in their quest, which was a complex procedure. To significantly cut down on the time and labor expenses for drivers, it is possible to speed up this procedure by unifying the platform and incorporating features that assist users in finding parking spaces on one of the most popular products. According to the poll, Google Maps is the software that is most commonly utilized.
Add a new Parking feature to Google Maps.
Secondary Research/
Parking Meters in New York City
Parking meters control multiple parking spaces on New York City streets. All parking meters accept quarters, dollar coins, and parking cards for payment. Drivers can also pay for street parking using the ParkNYC mobile app, website, or hotline.
Paying for the parking spot
Problem
-
Unstable payment on parking meters that may not accept credit cards time to time
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No change after paying cash or coins
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Confusing interface and experience for infrequent users
Smart Parking Meters Monitor
Smart parking meter is used to keep track of how long a car is parked at a certain location.
Monitoring Spots using Camera
Each parking meters provide a platform that includes all the advanced conveniences and capabilities anticipated from a Cloud-based system including round-the-clock monitoring, manage rates, examine payments, and conduct audits. The web-based parking management system, allows people to view revenue, transactions, and occupancy for the day, week, and month, as well as compare them to previous periods.
The platform may examine each machine's real-time screens, view logs, run reports, modify system settings, preview receipts, and make any customization from within the platform.
User & Product Research/
User Interview
I conducted targeted interviews with eight volunteers after screening them, using a more narrowly focused brief to identify the problems they currently face and would face under the new system.
The Objectives of the interview
-
Identify the driver's pain points while they search for parking
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Recognize how drivers behave when they can't find a parking space
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Recognize a driver's priorities and emotional state as they search for parking
Affinity Analysis
Convenience
Prefer nearby spot with an easy process to ensure the safety during driving
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Driver tensed before even leaving to a congested place with the apprehension of where will he/she will find parking
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Driver abandons low priority or leisure activity if parking not available which disrupts their enjoyment
-
Driver spends many time to find a spot and their car which is also a waste of cost
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Driver experience the complex process of making parking payments
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Cruising due to lack of parking spots in congested areas which wastes fuel and time
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Loss of time due to not knowing where to park and relies heavily on guesswork and luck
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Car gets lost in congestion and hard to find in busy places
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Complex payment system leads to the cost of time
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Stress before traveling to congested area, due uncertainty of available parking
User Priority
User Behavior
Pain Points
Competitive Analysis
It was crucial to break down and analyze the existing parking locator products on the market because many companies have entered the Smart Parking industry in recent years.
User Priority
-
Online payments via the app
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Bookmarking feature to save parking spots
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Comprehensive map view of available spots
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Notification alerts in all apps
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Vehicle registration to confirm the validity of the user
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Proper help and documentation for the user
Common Weaknesses
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Apps filled with unnecessary features and services
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Inconsistent use of iconography in all apps
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Some apps don't provide navigation feature to the booked spot
Opportunities
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Leveraging parking meters monitor to create seamless parking space finding process
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Including real-time information like available spots near the destination
Threats
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Parking spots not being updated on time leading to multiple cars coming together
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Another platform for people to pay and modify the parking
Research Process
Solution /
Look for parking slot efficiently with database from Parking Meters system on Google Maps
Conceptualize and design a new features within Google Maps for drivers that tracks available parking spots in real-time using database from parking meter's web-based system, provides multiple payment options and modify the parking time.
Google Maps notifies the driver as soon as the parking meter detects an empty space. The product will ORCHESTRATE all of the parking spaces, vehicles, and drivers in the city to create a more efficient, unified, and tactic system.
User Flow/
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Logic Behind/
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Execution/
Parking Mode for Guiding Directly to the Spot
Drivers can activate parking mode when they need to park close to their destination. When there are three minutes left till arrival, the system will direct the driver to the closest available parking space. If it's occupied during that period, the AI will reconnect to the parking meter and look for another spot.
Seamless Process for
Occupying a Spot
Enter the name or relevant words to find the items. Users can browse various sections on the homepage, such as new releases, works by creators they follow, or trending works on the platform.
Information and receipt provided in detail
The start and end times, pricing, and spot number could all be confirmed by drivers, and they may make any necessary adjustments. Additionally, they can pay for the parking spot using Google Pay on a single platform, and a receipt will be given.
Notification in Advance to Avoid Additional Fee
Drivers will be informed ten minutes before the parking period expires and won't be worry about being charged for additional time in the parking lot. They can easily modify and extend the parking time in the parking section of Google Map if they need extra time.
Appendix/
