GoGo

Product Design Case Study | Personal Project | Timeline: 4-5 months (May-Aug, 2023)
Project Overview
GoGo is my take on revisualizing a local transit app for public transport commuters. This case study details the initial phase of the product, focusing on designing a different approach to navigation aid for pedestrians as well as a pedestrian infrastructure reporting feature.

Disclaimer: This is an app design case study created for an online coursework and not an actual functioning app. It's sole purpose is to serve as an inspiration to any authorities/product companies on features I wish to see in their products in the future as a fellow user 🥹
My Contributions
As this is my final project for the Coursera-Google UX Design course, I am responsible from start to finish of the project. This includes researching on the issues faced by commuters, conducting competitor analysis, wireframing, creating high fidelity UI designs, and prototyping.
Answer my survey!
GoGo is what I wish to see in a pedestrian-friendly transit app, or rather an extension to the current transit and GPS navigation apps.
Me and my experiences with transit/navigation apps as a casual public transport user:
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As someone whom is afraid to drive, I'm always excited to hear that the new trendy cafe in town is accessible via public transport. Brownie points if said café is near a train station and serves good coffee! Now here's the thing, I also happen to be a worrywart. I like knowing exactly how my commute would go from point A-Z and whether if the footpath suggested to me is down a row of shops near a bustling main road or behind a quiet alleyway.
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This is why I am the type to utilize tools like Google Maps' Street View to look up unfamiliar places I plan on visiting. Often times, I would be ever so grateful for my "virtual walks" but unfortunately there has been times where my “walk” would stop mid-way due to the limitations in areas Google Maps' Street View is able to capture. Taking my virtual walks out of the picture, sometimes I’ll arrive at my destination just fine, other times I would end up in a foreign part of town because my GPS glitched.
Problem 1: GPS routes are not always pedestrian-friendly
‍Digital maps are created using GPS data and depending on the product/app, it'll come integrated with different services. Below is a comparison between 3 navigation / transit apps available in Malaysia:
The apps mentioned aren't necessarily bad, but certain features can be improved to make navigation and reporting pedestrian infrastructure/public transport related issues easier for Malaysians. Below is a deeper dive into the issues I have identified.

Would also like to thank Sour Power @Tiktok for allowing me to feature their video as an example in this case study!‍
Observation on Google Maps Walking Mode:
Importance of in-building navigation (left animated screen)
- Street view is a powerful feature, but in this situation, the suggested route is not pedestrian-friendly
- This mall has a fully covered link to the MRT station. Had "in-building directions" been available, the ideal suggested route during mall opening hours should be via the mall and not along busy roads
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Importance of crowdsourced navigation (two screens on right)
- Moovit uses crowdsource data for routes and Google Maps does not
- Using the same starting and ending point, the route suggested on Google Maps is 950m vs the 150m route on Moovit
- It is also important to know that the pedestrian-friendly routes we see on Moovit are contributed by local volunteers. Meaning, the availability of it is limited to volunteer submissions only. If we truly wish to promote pedestrian-friendly route alternatives, we cannot rely 100% on individual volunteer crowdsourced routes. Businesses and public transport providers are also highly encouraged to do their part in contributing.
Pros & cons of Google Street View
- Great feature, bad pedestrian routes
- (Left screen) Steps cannot be accessed after a user [Starts] their navigation journey
- (Right screen) [Directions] do not show Street View images
- Both Street View and AR Live View can be quite taxing on older phone models.
Observation on local transit app, PULSE by myrapid
- (First Screen) Based on Apple's app store reviews, users are mostly downloading the app for it's bus tracker feature
- Many users are unhappy with the accuracy of the bus tracker
- (Middle Screen) Not a great journey planner. The app's search feature does not recognize many street addresses = challenging to plan trip ahead of time when you are not physically at the location.
- (Last Screen) The walking route suggested on PULSE is the exact same on Google Maps
A local transit app, yet so much potential
- If no public transport is utilized in the searched route, no navigation info will be displayed
Imagine only using PULSE for your journey: you started your commute using PULSE > you close the app by accident during your train commute > you arrive at your stop > you re-open PULSE to search for your destination > you realize that you no longer have access to the remaining directions and is now forced to open another app for directions.

PULSE can be considered as an official local transit app. Although it's easier said than done, I believe with the right resources and cooperation from relevant authorities, businesses, and fellow citizens/public transport commuters, it can potentially do more than it's existing features.

In this phase of our product design case study, one of the problems we will be attempting to solve is - how can we re-imagine pedestrian navigation aid to increase the usage of public transport in the country.
Problem 2.1: The concerns surrounding our pedestrian infrastructure
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‍To many, it may seem like a mild inconvenience, but to some, it could mean a potential risk of safety

For years, Malaysia's urban planning and poorly maintained pedestrian infrastructures have been put on blast not just by us as citizens but tourists as well. Seeing that introducing new footpaths to a developed plot of land can easily take years of planning and huge sums of funding, maintaining the condition of existing pedestrian infrastructures would be the next best thing.

However, that leads to a new found problem. How many of us actually know where or who to and sometimes even, HOW to file a complaint for pedestrian infrastructure/transit issues?
Problem 2.2: The process of filing pedestrian infrastructure complaints
‍As of today, public infrastructure complaints need to be submitted to it's respective area's road maintenance departments' SISPAA (Sistem Pengurusan Aduan Awam) platform or via the list of options listed on the SISPAA's FAQ page.
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As a fellow pedestrian myself, this means I would need to know:
1. Exact location of the issue
2. Specific department that's in-charge of the area
Looking into several SISPAA websites, here are some features I wish could be implemented to make this process easier.
1. A mobile-friendly interface design (Right now, there's much zooming in, and zooming out required)
2. Option to detect my current location or have the select from map feature across all SISPAA sites
3. Option to file a complaint without the need to provide any personal info

This concludes our findings surrounding the second problem we will be attempting to solve - how can a local transit app simplify the process of filing a public infrastructure related complaint.

Thank you Fazley @Twitter for allowing me to use their video in my case study. I learned a lot from him during our brief e-mail exchange. I'm so glad I reached out, really appreciate Fazley for taking the time to go through my case study and providing me with valuable info regarding the topic!
Before looking into my solutions, I ought to give credit to my main inspirations - Google Maps & Travel Walking Videos
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When it comes to travel/trip planning, my YouTube searches would typically look like this:
“Walking to Cafe X from MRT Pasar Seni”
“How to get to X from Shibuya station”

We already know my love-hate relationship with Google Maps Street View, so let's talk about the walking videos and how these have helped me so much in my travels. Looking at it from a pedestrian viewpoint, not only am I able to accurately visualize my walking distance, I’m also able to see if the route feels safe and small details such as whether or not if I’ll need to carry along an umbrella for the day. Naturally, these travel walking videos have become something I wish I had integrated within transit apps.
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Thank you Walking Dino for allowing me to feature their channel as an example in this case study.
Wireframing Process
Some wireframes I sketched to explore potential layouts and features I wanted to include in GoGo
Design changes 01 - Reduce clutter, improved written directions

About the initial designs:
Screen 1: On the main navigations page, functionality for the 2 buttons next to each transit point were either:
A. Best walking route & Wheelchair-accessible-preferred route
B. Video walking guide & Photo walking guide
Issues: Unnecessary visual clutter. Users can pre-set their preferred route during the start of their search. Comparing routes using this flow actually requires extra taps.
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Screen 2: On the video walking guide, users have access to videos of the same route, recorded in different languages. Route directions are generated from video transcripts.
Issues: Multilingual video submissions lead to heavier storage and a longer quality screening process, sourcing walking videos in different languages can be a challenge. Lastly, transcripts may have a human touch in message articulation, but it is too lengthy to read on a commute.
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Screen 3: On the photo walking guide, users will scroll along their journey.
Issues: Longer footpath = long page for users to scroll. Users may accidentally scroll away and find it challenging to re-trace which point of their photo walking guide they are on.
The following details the changes made to the initial designs:
- The main directions' transit points only feature one button, taking users to the visual walking guides screen
- Video and photo walking guides have been combined to share a screen, but tapping on any of the photos will open the photo walking guide flow (3rd screen)
- To save resources, multilingual video guides are no longer available, but users will have access to multilingual closed captions.
- Within each walking guide, users will still be given an option to switch between best walking route and wheelchair-accessible-preferred route. This would make it easier for users to switch between routes when comparing.
Design changes 02 - Be more informative
Before coming up with a new design for the photo walking guide, I thought of removing the flow entirely. When users tap on the individual photo walking guides, the larger view of the image would be displayed in a pop-up. Tapping anywhere else on the screen would then close the pop-up.
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In my latest design update, the photo walking guide is back and paired with concise written navigation instructions. Users will also have an option to tap along their journey or return to the main photo walking guides anytime.
Design changes 03 - Adding route mapping with Google My Maps
The initial walking guide submission flow had missed out the "route mapping" feature. Missing this step would mean requiring more manpower from GoGo's end to guess and identify the routes shown from the video and photo walking guide submissions from GoGo's crowdsourcing initiative.

In the updated design, users will be encouraged to map out their route submissions using Google My Maps, then sharing the link to GoGo's team. As Google My Maps cannot be accessed without a Google account, this is temporarily optional.
View Prototype
What is GoGo? How does it work? Check out the prototype above featuring GoGo's navigation feature 👆🏻
‍GoGo is a local transit app, with a goal to simplify navigation for pedestrians in hopes of encouraging more locals to commute using public transport. To do so, GoGo intends to have a team dedicated to finding the best pedestrian friendly routes and creating visual walking guides for the routes. To fill in navigation gaps and faster expansion of routes, the app will also be using a combination of GPS and crowdsourced data to generate its directions for users. In the scenario where one’s GPS isn’t working, users would still be able to carry on with their journey using the photo navigation guides in the app.

The secondary goal is to simplify the process of filing pedestrian infrastructure and public transport related complaints. Most transit apps would allow general reports to determine crowds and delays, but GoGo's reporting feature would also accommodate complaints related to both our local public transport system as well as pedestrian infrastructure.
Projek Jalan-Jalan:
Hopes of making Malaysia a walk-able country
GoGo can simplify navigation through crowdsourced routes and visual aids
Walking routes and visual aids in the early stages of the app will need to be crafted by GoGo's team. This would act as an example and at the same time show locals the potential this app holds as a digital directory if everyone contributes to it through GoGo's Projek Jalan-jalan program.

GoGo can simplify the process of reporting pedestrian infrastructure and public transport issues by being a consolidation centre for complaints and suggestions.
GoGo can't fix a fused bulb at a bus stop, nor can it cement a new footpath. However, what GoGo can potentially do is act as a bridge between pedestrians and relevant authorities involved in the country's urban planning and public transportation. This would solve the issue of complaints being scattered across different platforms as well as complaints filed to the wrong departments.
View Prototype
Check out the prototype for GoGo's Projek Jalan-Jalan 👆🏻
‍Projek Jalan-jalan is a sub-section within the GoGo app created with 2 purposes in mind. The first being a portal for volunteers to submit their own routes and walking guides to GoGo's database. The second being a portal for pedestrians and public transport commuters to file complaints. These complaints will then be consolidated by the GoGo team and passed onto relevant authorities.
In retrospect
I initially worked on GoGo as my final project for the Google UX Design course by Coursera back in May-August 2023. As I’m adding this case study to my portfolio in May 2024, I have since completed the course and revisited the project to make several updates to the original design.

Thinking back, it took me a long time to decide on a project I wanted to do for the finale because the criteria I had set for myself were:
1. Something I would personally want to use, if existed in the market
2. Needs to serve a good purpose
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The lightbulb moment eventually came to me after an interaction with a grandpa I met while waiting for the MRT to arrive. The grandpa was taking this train for the first time to meet his family at a nearby station and wasn't sure if he was waiting at the correct platform, thus approaching me for clarification. This small interaction reminded me of the times when I looked up walking videos on Youtube to familiarize myself with the surroundings before visiting a foreign location because I was afraid of getting lost with no one around to help me. My thought process then skipped to how nice it would be if gps maps and in-building directories both had walking video/photo guides integrated in them. Next thing I knew, I had my notebook open, drafting my thoughts and plans for GoGo.
Future plans for GoGo
My ideal version of GoGo is still in faraway land. I may be concluding my case study now, but as the popular saying goes, things change with time, and this applies to user needs as well. With the flow of time, there will always be a need for future iterations, and that's how I feel towards GoGo. Going forward, I plan to explore more ideas and UX solutions through GoGo. Here are some:

Hold to view on lockscreen: In order to help users conserve their phone battery, I want to include an informative way for users to receive navigation while the app runs in the background during their commute. This idea came to me in midst of my writing. Amongst the list of future plans, this will most likely be the first I'll work on.
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Desktop integration: I would like to explore alternative design choices I could make on a larger canvas.
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Route mapping tool design: Currently, users submitting walking guides to GoGo are encouraged to map out their routes using Google My Maps. The platform's editor feature is not the easiest to comprehend. In the future, I would like to explore more on route mapping tool designs. Hopefully I would be able to come up with a simpler to use route-mapping tool alternative.
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User profile setup: Whenever I encounter apps requiring me to sign up an account to use the app, depending on the functionality of the app, I almost always choose to delete the app. That said, while I still want GoGo to be a "no sign up required" app, I feel that it would be good to give users an option to sign up an account for the right purposes. Amongst being: simplifying the process of users wanting to check the status or follow up on their filed complaints. This would also eliminate the need to note down their complaint reference number. With a designated profile, users would also be able to access saved information on the (future) desktop site as well.

Walking guides and complaints sorting dashboard: This is to explore what the GoGo team would see when sorting walking guide submissions and complaints. How they would be able to categorize and forward complaints to it's respective authorities.

Crowdsourcing incentives: Realistically speaking, introducing an incentive program would require proper funding or monetary collaborations/partnerships. Regardless, I would still like to explore user flows and designs when an incentive program is part of an app. This also adds to the need for a user sign up option.

Transit schedules/bus tracker: What's a transit app without transit info? These are features I feel most transit apps have already done a pretty decent job on so it will be a low priority in my future explorations. That said, these are still features I would like to try designing to see if I would do it any different from the current apps in the market.

That is a wrap for my product design case study on GoGo(for now). I'm excited to continue exploring the above in future iterations. So far, this case study has been through 4(?) rounds of iterations, and there's definitely more to come. Check back frequently for small updates along my journey!
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