Saferide
This project addresses a mobility issue of stress occurring during the daily commutes, and an adaptation issue of switching roles from a solo driver to a ride-sharer. The goal is to understand both the positive and negative aspects of commuting, and to design a new ride-sharing service that facilitates transitions between contexts. By providing frames for composing routines, performances, and rituals, this project exemplifies how products can help people develop strategies and interventions to support their transitions.
I designed interviews and survey protocols using the “modes of transition” framework. After conducting semi-structured interviews with thirty commuters in the Carnegie Mellon University community, including solo drivers, carpoolers and bus riders, we observed that convenience, cost, commute time, and personal preferences are the most important features motivate commuting choices. These features remain significant among responses from 240 participants included in a follow-up online survey on commuting choice.
Figure: Likert-scale from 1-5 illustrating flexibility as one of the primary reasons for commuting choice (1:Unlikely – 5:Very Likely)
People characterize their best commute times when they are experiencing “me-time,” “traffic-free time,” or “routine and ritual time.” Based on our interview and survey results and literature review, we developed 13 ride-sharing service concepts and tested them in a series of focus groups. We are currently documenting this project, further results will be updated soon.
