Mobility x Safety NYU Shuttle Waiting Area
An experience prototype aimed at improving student’s waiting experience in public areas by seamlessly blending safety and mobility considerations
Duration: 4 months
Strategies: Participant Observation, Experience Prototyping
Group Project
Context
As a group, we openly discussed our shared experiences of feeling unsafe in public spaces, which included distressing incidents like catcalling, sexual harassment, and uncomfortable encounters with strangers. Driven by these concerns, we collectively decided to intervene in the issue of public safety. Our research and observations led us to narrow our focus, centering our efforts on improving safety within campus shuttle bus waiting areas.
Process Breakdown
Anecdote Opportunity Interventions
1. Improve the MTA help point system to become more easily noticeable, approachable, reliable, and discreet, with visible language accessibility buttons
2. Offer proactive route change notifications to commuters before they leave their homes, along with affordable alternative transportation options for a safe and efficient journey to their destinations.
Prototype Phase 1
Emerging Themes
Affinity Diagram
Guiding Question: How do you define safety?
On Saturday noon, Cher and I met up to hang out. We decided to go to the Whitney Museum. Instead of using Google maps for directions, we decided to use one of the MTA safety infrastructures, which is the MTA Help Point system. We went to the 45th Street Station at Sunset Park and saw two MTA help points, each stationed toward the front and end of the platform. We also saw two help points stationed at the center. So we went to the help point at the front of the platform and tried to use it to get directions to go to the Whitney Museum. We pressed the green INFORMATION button and immediately put us in touch with a Transit personnel.
“NYC Transit, how may I help you?” -
“We need help with traveling to the Whitney Museum. How do we get to the station 14th 8 Ave station?” - Fei, Cher
“You take the R train and transfer at Jay St Metrotech and then transfer to the uptown A train and get off that station.”
“Thank you” - Fei Cher
After the conversation, we used just the information we got from the train personnel and waited for the R train at the platform to come. While we were waiting, a elderly Asian woman came up to us and asked, “How do I get to Chinatown?” in Chinese. We responded and told her to take the R train and transfer at 36 st to the N train to get off Canal Street. Until the train comes, we continue our observation and realize no one actually uses the Help Point during our wait.
Anecdotes
I was trying to go home from Bobst at 12:30 AM. I used the NYU safety ride app which is free past midnight and safe since they are NYU drivers. However, it took 40 minutes to get a car and it took 15 minutes to come. In addition, it takes up to 4-5 students in a car so I had to wait for other students to get there which delayed the time even more. I was contemplating if I should just call an Uber myself because the point of safe ride is to get home safely at night but it was even delaying the time I was getting home. Therefore, despite I was packed and ready to leave, I had to wait for the car. This was not the first time NYU safe ride took long to come and I highly feel the need for NYU to make more cars available for students. In addition, safe ride only offers drop off at NYU buildings. I had to walk 10 minutes despite using safe ride, which I believe undermines the point of getting home safe.
Also, NYU shuttle Route A has recently changed their schedule/route. After the class ends at 8:30pm, we (Lydia and Chloe) have to run to catch the shuttle later at night back to Manhattan before it leaves. They’ve recently gotten rid of their stop by the class building (6 Metrotech) and now we have to adjust accordingly and find the next closest stop to get home safely (they’ve since given us a new stop, and then replaced it again last minute). In this process, the route was changed not just once, twice, without detailed explanation. Therefore, to catch the bus, students would have to walk about 7 minutes late at night from school building. Especially, given the fact that the new stop is in a tunnel, which could expose them to danger and inconvenience. NYU only informed students that it is due to a construction but it made me wonder why they are doing it mid-semester, risking students’ accessibility and convenience, when they can do it over the break.