Feeling safer on trains
by creating a new
information system
A proposal for the
Metropolitan Transport Authority
New York City Subway trains stop for many reasons. Sometimes, there is a train in front of yours, or there is a medical emergency and you are waiting in a tunnel, with no signal, for a long time. How do you know what is going on?
Conductors speak over PA, but the announcements are almost impossible to be heard. Trains are old, the AC is kicking on high, and the trains are packed. Besides, if English is not your first language, you can get very anxious because you don’t know what is going on. Also, people with hearing impairments or wearing headphones cannot listen to these announcements. The system is known for its insecurity, and you get very anxious on what is going on.
We conducted a think-aloud user journey to co-design
a solution for the problems inside the system.
All newly built trains are packed with screens, which its only purpose is to display ads. What if we used the screens to display key information for passengers?
Using a division design, the proposed information system displays the train direction, the following stops, visual announcements when the train stops, or if there is a route change, and space for ads.
Project details
CLIENT
Proposal. Project not released.
COLLABORATORS
Jose Inclan and Kai Hsiao
YEAR
May 2024