Journey Safely
Revolutionizing safe driving through voice controlled reporting.
Platform: iOS Mobile App
v1: June ‘24 - Sept ‘24
v2: March ‘25
Graduate School Project
Roles
Timeline
Lead Designer
Tools
Figma
The Problem
Reckless and intoxicated drivers cause thousands of accidents annually that are life changing and sometimes fatal. There is a need to provide a solution to decrease the amount of reckless and drunk drivers on the road in order to keep individuals safe.
The Outcome
I designed a mobile application that provides users with the ability to document and report reckless driving incidents using a voice controlled iOS shortcut.
The Goals
Increase awareness of hazardous drivers among communities
Create a connection between the community and law enforcement through documented reports
The Challenge
Collaborating with first responders to integrate their resources and services into this platform may pose a challenge regarding government clearance and privacy concerns.
Who is involved?
I utilized a swim lane diagram to gain clarity on the processes that I wanted to take place in the app and how I wanted different users to collaborate cross functionally.
Initial Discoveries
Competitor Analysis
I conducted a competitor analysis of three driver reporting platforms; Nexar, TextThemIn, and Bad Driver Database.
Similar Capabilities
Competitors allow users to report reckless drivers.
All competitors require the user to physically handle their phone.
Surveys
100%
of participants
stated that they encounter reckless driving weekly.
85.7%
of participants
ignore hazardous driving due to lack of knowledge on reporting methods & not remembering key details regarding the car and the driver.
Apparent Differences
Nexar’s motion detection and ability to record sets it apart from its competitors.
TextThemIn has ease of use on their side as the user does not have to download an app or set up any new technology in order to use the platform.
Bad Driver Database fosters community and allows for users to share their experiences to warn others about reckless drivers.
66.7%
of participants
utilize hand-free devices and driving mode apps in efforts to minimize phone use during driving.
User Interviews
Key Learnings
Solutions currently exist but may not provide the user with the safest user experience while driving.
The use of motion detection and video recording cuts out steps users may have to take in order to document and report reckless driving.
A forum based platform may not be the best solution for holding reckless drivers accountable by law.
I interviewed 5 participants from the survey in order to gain clarity on their needs and concerns regarding the use of an application of this nature.
Participants expressed interest in the proposed application and 100% of participants stated that they would use the app if given the chance.
Participants also expressed concerns for the app. All participants questioned how the validity of reports would be assessed along with privacy concerns, lack of follow up, and legal implications.
Common Insights
The expectation that a reporting resource may be used for negative instead of positive reasons is high. Considering strategies to combat false reporting is imperative to the success of Journey Safely.
Retaliation
Lack of Trust
Faith in law enforcement is not high among the public. The expectations that law enforcement would take action on the reports made are low.
The possibility of human error can lead to inaccurate reporting making it a concern and possible deterrent among users.
Human Error
Hands Free Technology
Hands-free technology is heavily preferred by those looking to prioritize safe driving. Integrating hands-free technology and voice control into Journey Safely will be beneficial in encouraging the use of the platform.
Solution Exploration
Based on the insights discovered from the research conducted I began to explore possible solutions.
Considering the severity of users concerns and the grey area that exists within these areas of concern, producing a solution that met all of the needs expressed throughout this research period proved to be difficult.
A hands-free voice activated focused application focused on voice recording and transcriptions to submit reports while driving is feasible, however, requires the integration on mobile shortcuts in order to open the app while driving.
The potential integration of traffic sensors and cameras to detect report accuracy when law enforcement are reviewing reports provides a solution for accuracy but would require intense levels of clearance for implementation.
A digital product embedded and sold in new vehicles may be too invasive and takes away from the collaborative aspect of the solution.
Initial Ideas
With the limitations listed above in mind, and due to the short time frame, I decided to focus primarily on creating a hands-free and voice controlled focus product for the initial MVP. Integration of traffic devices and collaboration with law enforcement will be explored in the future iterations of Journey Safely.
I produced 3 rounds of low-fidelity wireframes and conducted usability testing with each round. Following these testing rounds I received feedback from 6 users that aided in identifying gaps in my current prototype.
High Fidelity Explorations
I focused on filtering for the initial functionality of the community page. Users found the filters useful but felt that they were required to do too much reading in order to process what was on the page.
To reduce content overload, I designed a map view option for quick scan ability. To enable this option I opted for a toggle to enable quick and efficient navigation. However, there continued to be concerns with the visual presentation and usability of this version.
For the home page I centralized the focus to be on initiating a new recording with intentions of it being the main purpose of the app. Users felt that the presentation lacked confirmation of its purpose.
Additional Feedback & Concerns
To further emphasize its purpose, I created a frame around the microphone icon to confirm that it is a button that is meant for use. The profile and settings icons were moved to the navigation bar to deter users from being distracted from the main focus of the app, voice controlled reports. Despite these changes, there continued to be room for improvement.
