Ticket Vending Machine
How to make self-service ticket vending machines at train stations more accessible for novice users.
This study examines train station self-service ticket vending machine usability for first-time users. Self-service ticket vending machines (TVMs) are replacing ticket counters in public transportation. A third of customers buy tickets at TVMs, making them popular. This research focuses on different attributes of novice users and makes it easier for them to understand and access them. Specific situation (buying train tickets at vending machines) by a broad demographic (novice users) who share different human attributes, in a particular body, sight, and understanding capabilities. This project will work on the improvements that can be done to the machines to enhance the interface and design.
Project Overview
Process
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User Research
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Interviews
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Observtaions
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Human Facotrs
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Hi -Fi Wireframe
Tools
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Figma
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Google Forms
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Miro
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Google Scholar
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Microsoft Teams
My Role
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UX & UI Designer
Duration
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Overall - 8 Weeks
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Discovery & Research - 2 Weeks
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Design & Testing - 6 Weeks
Observations, interviews and Case study of users
A Series of observations and interviews were conducted at the Euston station and Marylebone station to analyze users’ behaviors and opinions when using the machines.
Users must stoop to see the ticketing screen options. Every time you make a purchase, you also stoop down.
​The station has many machines, but it's hard to tell what they're used for.
Travelers buy group tickets, but there's not enough room to stand and see the screen.
The credit card slot and contactless reader are not visible.
Case study of users
In the case study, we visited different stations to demonstrate the ticket-buying process to find our user's issue. Ticket purchase instructions are unclear. Too many options will confuse users. Users must restart the process to change a frustrating element. Users also forget their payment method and can't find the discount button.
Process of buying Tickets
Select Destination
Select Jourey Type
Too many option for buy a ticket. Which one is correct one?
It’s too complicated for finding my destination.
I don’t want to watch the text of the information section.
Check payment detail
Add Railcard
Why I have to restart the whole process when I just changed ONE thing?
Finally I found whrere I can add my discount card.
No idea what I selected to make this price. I forgot it again...
Opinions on Online Groups
TripAdvisor
We'll visit London in a few weeks. London will be visited by train on Saturday and Sunday. Harlow Mill station's ticket office is closed on weekends. Nevertheless, there's a ticket machine. Will our family get the best price? Should we buy our tickets in advance and use the ticket machine? We've never used a ticket machine, so we're worried we'll act like headless chickens and buy overpriced tickets.
Those ticket machines have confusing programming. The machine should sell super off-peak day returns, but it may take a few clicks to get the options right. I'd buy the ticket online and pick it up at a manned station in your situation. (Bring your credit card for an ID check when you pick them up).
I bought an 'any time' train ticket because I couldn't work out what 'off peak' meant.
Those ticket machines have confusing programming. The machine should sell super off-peak day returns, but it may take a few clicks to get the options right. I'd buy the ticket online and pick it up at a manned station in your situation. (Bring your credit card for an ID check when you pick them up).
Exploration of HF of SSTs
Through literature review, interview, observation, and online group opinions, I examined the human factor issues novice TVM users face in three areas: ergonomics, vision, and cognitive abilities.
Barriers to the Use of Self-Service Ticket Vending Machine
Human Factor Problems User face in the User Interface
Process of buying Tickets
Select Destination
Select Jourey Type
Vision Problem
Color
All colours are hard to read.
Size
Same-sized buttons for different functions
Color
White lettering on dark background is hard to read.
Color
Poor text-to-background contrast
Font Size
Too small to read in information part
Cognitive
Problem
Unorganized IA
Putting diverse purpose functions in same section confuses users.
Difficult to select the destination
Typing a location is harder than just picking one from a list, especially for people from other countries.
Check payment detail
Add Railcard
Color
Vision Problem
Every button has a colour that doesn't make sense (why are the "add railcard" and "pay now" buttons red?).
Color
White lettering on dark background is hard to read.
Color
Poor text-to-background contrast
Font Size
The icon is too confusing and hard to understand for the user.
Information overload
Too many information in one page
Cognitive
Problem
No Clear guidance
Incomprehensible terminology and information
No Clear guidance
Most of the time, people can't find the discount area on the screen because they don't know that adding the railcard means getting the discount.
There is no details provide for the price, makes user confused
And if you choose the wrong information, you have to go back to the original screen and start over.
Problem Defined
The research confirmed that novice TVM users struggle with the interface and machine design.
The below graphic shows the process of using the machine for novice users. First-time users include children and disabled people. Foreign tourists usually buy group tickets for their first TVM ride. The process of buying tickets is divided into three parts: decide to buy tickets, choose the tickets on the screen, then pay and collect the tickets.
The problems of each step in the process will be pointed out and used as the foundation of the design.
1. Decide to buy ticket(s) for the journey
The inappropriate height and angle of the TVM make people hard to use. Also, it is too high for people with disabilities, and the screen is too small for a group of people to look at.
2. Selecting ticket(s)
The process of buying tickets feels unclear. As observed in the user flow, the system is confusing. Users usually need to start it all over again when they want to make changes which makes it hard to use.
User Flow of Original Design
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3. Payment for Tickets
Since the allocation doesn't follow a structure, novice users can't distinguish between payment types. Many people must bend over to reach their payments, and disabled people cannot.
Design Aims
As the target audience is the novice user, the design aims to make it easier to buy tickets. Therefore, it will focus on improving the buying ticket process including UI design, User flow, and an effective payment solution. The size of the machine will also be considered to make it easier to reach different people. The UI design and the flow are the most concerning parts. Therefore, will focus mainly on colors, font, and menu structure. Furthermore, machines are mainly used to buy tickets part so other functions will be skipped, such as Oyster card top-up, Pre-paid ticket collection, and travel card extension.
Design Concept
The new design should be positioned in the middle of the station instead of close to the walls like they are currently in the majority of stations. Also, the lightbox at the top of the machine indicates the usage clearly, which can help novice users to locate it easily, as from our interviews we discovered that people struggle to find them. And the spare space between the machines not only is convenient for people to pass by, but it also ensures there is enough space for a group of people to buy tickets.
User Journey of New Design
The angle and height have been modified to allow people of different heights to touch the screen, so users won't become tired from poor posture. In the "User Interface Designer" section, the second portion of picking a ticket has been simplified to improve the user experience. Users simply need to choose cash or digital payment after selecting tickets. They can then instantly and intuitively find payment equipment.
Physical Design
We considered novice users' heights and mobility to build a solution for everyone. We gathered statistics before commencing the design process. We created a prototype using current data:
User Flow of New Design
Reorganizing user flow makes it neater and much easier. The previous flow led many access points to the same interface where users always get lost. It also requires at least six steps to execute the action. The biggest issue is that users must restart the procedure to update their selections. The revised user flow emphasizes ticket purchases. It simplified the payment page process into two steps. The screen now has a "back" button so users can change their minds without starting over.
OLD version vs New version
Since the allocation doesn't follow a structure, novice users can't distinguish between payment types. Many people must bend over to reach their payments, and disabled people cannot.
Poor Navigation :
Too many buttons on the same page with difficult to comprehend text.
Prioritize Features :
Put "Buy Ticket" in the primary focus area and reduce user selection options.
One Step One Page
In this circumstance, novices may hesitate to continue if they forget what they selected.
Side Bar
Keep Users informed of their selection, thereby decreasing cognitive burden.
Payment Preview on last page
Novices cannot understand what they have selected through the total price
Payment Preview on last page
Once the user has completed all selections, the "pay" button will become active.
Misleading position
Information is too scattered, which leads to a low understanding efficiency.
Too Low Colour contrast
Buttons in different formats are confusing. Color contrast is not suitable for reading.
Increase reading coherence
Ticket type and detail ticket type selections are put together
Colour contrast
Outcome and Learning
We studied novice TVM users' habits and attitudes to identify their problems and the gaps in the present technology. We created a revolutionary approach that considers users' cognitive ability, physical attributes, and height. Our final design met our usability and user-practicality goals. This research examined human factors and how to incorporate them into new creations. We found that observations and interviews are crucial for going beyond academic literature review. Thanks to those, we were able to monitor how users engage with the system and what they think. The information we gathered was crucial to our design. If we had additional time, we would have liked to test our solution with users to figure out how to make the design more usable for everyone.