Project overview:

Mexico City launched the Sistema de Movilidad Integrada (Integrated Mobility System), a comprehensive initiative to unify its seven major transport systems, serving a population of over 20 million. The goal was to simplify navigation for citizens and visitors, creating a seamless and understandable transit experience.

Challenge:

The integrated system encompassed diverse modes of transport, including the Metro (subway), Metrobus (urban bus rapid transit), RTP (feeder buses), Cablebus (cableway), and other connecting systems. The Mobility Secretariat (SEMOVI) tasked us with creating a user-centered signage manual to facilitate seamless transfers and connections between these disparate systems, enabling each to develop its own accessible signage using existing resources.

My role:

As a Design Strategist at 23 Design, I played a key role in developing the signage manual, focusing on user research, strategic design, and the creation of a practical tool for implementation.

Key contributions:

• Comprehensive user and stakeholder research:
  • Conducted in-depth interviews with leaders from operational, security, and communication offices across all seven transport systems, identifying their goals, pain points, and existing signage challenges.
  • Performed user, space, and desktop research to understand the real-world experience of navigating the city's transit systems, empathizing with user challenges and the design constraints faced by signage creators.
• User-centered design process cevelopment:
  • Proposed a signage design process centered on user needs, mirroring the methodology used in previous Metrobus prototyping.
  • Designed a system that would be easy to understand by the different design teams that would implement it.
• Signage system framework creation:
  • Developed a template outlining the essential components of an effective signage system, ensuring consistency across all transport modes.
  • Created a clear information hierarchy and organization guide, enabling users to access relevant information at critical decision points during their journey.
• Iterative testing and refinement:
  • Leveraged ongoing signage updates and replacements across different systems to test initial findings and gather real-time user feedback.
  • This allowed us to refine the manual to maximize it’s usability.
• Expert consultation and collaboration:
  • Consulted with mobility experts to validate design decisions and ensure the manual's practicality and effectiveness.
  • Collaborated with the SEMOVI team to ensure the manual aligned with their strategic objectives.

Results:

• The signage manual has been successfully implemented across Mexico City's integrated mobility system, guiding the creation of new and updated signage.
• The manual enabled individual transport systems to develop consistent and user-friendly signage, improving the overall transit experience for millions of users.
• The work that frog, Metrobus and SEMOVI began, is still being used as a base for new signage updates.
• The project was recognized as a finalist in the Fast Company 2021 Innovation by Design Awards.

Key learnings:

This project demonstrated the power of user-centered design in addressing complex urban mobility challenges. By prioritizing user needs and creating a practical design tool, we helped streamline Mexico City's transit system and improve the daily lives of its citizens.

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