At the end of last year, I visited New York for the first time. It was an important destination for me because of my experience working as a head designer with Curb which provides software for NYC's famous yellow cabs. It was an incredible work experience, and seeing the company's cabs in action on the streets of New York only reinforced my appreciation for the work we did. It's an honor to be part of a company that is such an integral part of the city's transportation system, and I feel grateful to have played a role in helping to shape Curb's offerings. Even 5 years after I'm proud of the work I did even though not everything was perfect and it has a lot of places to improve. Now I decided to share some work.
Curb
Curb (formerly Verifone Taxi System) is the leading taxi dispatch and payment system in NYC and USA. They also are an advertisement publisher.
Curb offers innovative transportation solutions with a portfolio of 10+ products (for B2B, B2C, and B2G), including a Driver App for mobile and tablet devices, a User App for iOS and Android, and several web portals for taxi agents, fleet management, and advertisement management systems.
Curb offers innovative transportation solutions with a portfolio of 10+ products (for B2B, B2C, and B2G), including a Driver App for mobile and tablet devices, a User App for iOS and Android, and several web portals for taxi agents, fleet management, and advertisement management systems.
My Role
I led a design effort of 70 talented engineers and 3 designers, and my focus was on improving the team's productivity and enhancing the user experience of our target users. My goal was to create transportation solutions that are accessible and seamless for everyone.
I was responsible for the whole product line, working hands-on with the most complex and 0-to-1 projects. By improving ways of working and establishing strategy and prioritization I made significant changes to the design maturity.
Timeline: It all was made remotely in 1,5 years timeframe from 2018 to 2019.
Timeline: It all was made remotely in 1,5 years timeframe from 2018 to 2019.
B2b User Needs
• Fleet management tools
(Hardware and software)
(Hardware and software)
• Licensed taxi services for corporate clients
• Advertising publishing
• Custom-branded ride-hailing apps
• Access to data and analytics
• Dedicated customer support
B2C USER NEEDS
• Ability to order/hail a taxi via mobile
• Accessible ride for users with mobility needs
• Transparent pricing and payments
• Transparent pricing and payments
• Drivers want to be connected with riders and manage their rides
• Real-time ride tracking and notifications
Business Needs
• Connect drivers to riders through a reliable platform
• Provide business tools for drivers to manage rides and grow their business
• Offer secure payment processing for riders and drivers
• Provide advertising services for businesses
• Develop transportation solutions for businesses and municipalities (MTA)
Challenge
1. The transportation industry is constantly evolving, and it is crucial to stay ahead by identifying the real problems that our users face. Strong competition with private transportation services (Uber, Lyft)
2. Design processes weren't established yet and often team was jumping into solutions without fully understanding the user's needs. It's a common situation with start-ups in which I don't have problems shifting focus to users. But working a lot with executives on this project was more challenging than usual because of their strong opinion.
3. It was crucial to guarantee accessibility for every user.
Curb Driver App
Goal — connect licensed drivers with riders.
Capabilities: accepting ride requests from passengers, navigating to their pickup and drop-off locations, and getting payments for their services.
Capabilities: accepting ride requests from passengers, navigating to their pickup and drop-off locations, and getting payments for their services.
When I started the app had only chat functionality. So for the majority of features, it was end-to-end work.
This includes:
• Managing driver accounts,
• Offer Management,
• Navigation,
• Scheduled Trips, Statistics,
• Driver Onboarding,
• Day/Night Mode,
• Meter.
This includes:
• Managing driver accounts,
• Offer Management,
• Navigation,
• Scheduled Trips, Statistics,
• Driver Onboarding,
• Day/Night Mode,
• Meter.
Establishing the Process
The lack of established processes was part of the challenge. So from the first task, I started working on growing design maturity. Added quantitative and qualitative techniques to the process: User Interviews (at the first stage it was interview with support people and the learning center), Data and Constraints analysis, Competitors' research, Feedback collection, Usability testing, and others.
One of the first tasks that I was working on included the opinion that "Drivers have really old devices, so we need to be focused on the smallest screen ratio". I doubted this and checked actual data — it revealed that drivers mostly (~90%) use large latest devices. Checking this data in the discovery stage — helped us to modify our approach early and build a solution to solve user needs.
Focus on user Testing
At first, I brought prototyping into our process which already help to validate solutions. And then I started testing them on real users. Recruiting users for a test was easy because the company has its own fleet and learning center. We didn't have a researcher on the team so I conducted all user research and usability testing with drivers to ensure that the app was easy to use and met their needs. For each feature, I interviewed 5 to 8 drivers.
These prototypes then become highly appreciated by our Learning Center and they continue to use them to teach new drivers.
These prototypes then become highly appreciated by our Learning Center and they continue to use them to teach new drivers.
Safety Measures
I made sure to prioritize the safety of our drivers and riders when creating the Driver App. One of them — the dark theme was introduced to reduce distraction while driving at night. The goal was to minimize the amount of light emitted by the phone and make the roads safer for everyone.
As another safety feature, we added functionality requiring drivers to confirm they are not driving while using the app. We made sure that the app was designed with large, easy-to-read text and buttons to minimize distractions while driving.
You can read more about accessibility approaches in this project in my other article
You can read more about accessibility approaches in this project in my other article
navigation and Map Design
The original product map was cluttered with unnecessary labels and distracting visuals making it difficult to track important information.
I recognized this issue and suggested a map redesign when the company switched from Google Maps to Open Street. The custom-created maps not only improved the visual appeal of all products but also made labels more visible and easier to read.
This change was made without any additional cost to the company and greatly improved the overall user experience.
I recognized this issue and suggested a map redesign when the company switched from Google Maps to Open Street. The custom-created maps not only improved the visual appeal of all products but also made labels more visible and easier to read.
This change was made without any additional cost to the company and greatly improved the overall user experience.
This map redesign also improved the user experience and appearance of the Rider App.
So I can only recommend investing in custom map design. It's an easy way to establish brand identity and make the design look cleaner.
So I can only recommend investing in custom map design. It's an easy way to establish brand identity and make the design look cleaner.
Learnings
Through this project, I gained valuable experience in managing stakeholders and supporting complete product ecosystems. It highlighted the significance of prioritizing accessibility and inclusivity when catering to various user roles.
Although the overall experience was positive and we implemented various changes, I believe there are still several areas that offer room for improvement. The product line has immense potential and presents numerous opportunities for growth.
Although the overall experience was positive and we implemented various changes, I believe there are still several areas that offer room for improvement. The product line has immense potential and presents numerous opportunities for growth.
Bonus stories
Hardware UI
My job included designing UI for hardware products such as payment terminals, in-car touchscreens, meters, and digital displays.
This was a step out of my comfort zone but brought an interesting perspective to the user experience. The main key to success here is communication and curiosity. Learning all about the devices and environments they used helped a lot while building solutions.
Design work beyond the boundaries of mobile and web has emphasized the significance of maintaining a user-centric approach in your design.
This was a step out of my comfort zone but brought an interesting perspective to the user experience. The main key to success here is communication and curiosity. Learning all about the devices and environments they used helped a lot while building solutions.
Design work beyond the boundaries of mobile and web has emphasized the significance of maintaining a user-centric approach in your design.
Curb Array
Curb Advertisement is a platform that offers both static and dynamic ad formats such as digital displays, and in-app advertising. I was working closely with our C-level executives on its new 0-to-1 evolution — Curb Array.
I was working on the discovery of this solution, working on strategy, and prioritization. So this platform allows advertisers to target specific demographics and locations, track ad performance, and receive detailed reporting and insights. It was complex and innovative work that I am still proud of.
I was working on the discovery of this solution, working on strategy, and prioritization. So this platform allows advertisers to target specific demographics and locations, track ad performance, and receive detailed reporting and insights. It was complex and innovative work that I am still proud of.
Curb Pay
Another platform in Curb's ecosystem. Designed to streamline the payment process for taxi fleets and their drivers. The system allows fleet owners to manage payments to their drivers. And includes features such as automatic payouts, detailed reporting and insights, and flexible payment options.
This system was designed mostly for our UK clients. And collaboration was with multiple different teams outside the typical group. It required research of the UK's payment specifics. Because it was later in the timeline and a lot of processes including a design system in place, the whole development was efficient and straightforward.
This system was designed mostly for our UK clients. And collaboration was with multiple different teams outside the typical group. It required research of the UK's payment specifics. Because it was later in the timeline and a lot of processes including a design system in place, the whole development was efficient and straightforward.
