CBC car park app

A mobile app owned by China Bloom Creation (CBC) to increase efficiency in accessing a few car parks located in Kowloon and New Territory. Combining license plate reader (LPR) system in the car park gates with web technology and easy-to-use design.

  • Challenge

    Designing an efficient mobile app that caters for parking areas in different districts.

  • Role

    UX UI design for mobile app

  • Company

    Kare

Overview

Demand for parking space in Hong Kong is always high, yet with the rapid improvement in technology and engineering have left some car parks unable to meet public demand, even overlooked. Together with team Kare, I designed our client’s car park app which was being developed by our development team. I’ve designed a direct and personalized car park mobile application suitable for Tuen Mun and Tsim Sha Tsui district with an open possibility to be used by our client throughout any Hong Kong districts, aimed for private car owner in Hong Kong.

Understanding the problem

I approached the project by becoming aware about the car park system (existed and LPR) from our electrical engineer. My primary focus was on the data the car park needed from and shared to the drivers. Together with the problem, I wrote down the details and possible features and customer to lean canvas to make sure my process aligned towards the app’s purpose.

The main problem we wanted to solve were:
- Increase car park accessibility (information and availability)
- Comfortable customer experience starting from:
- Finding the route to the car park
- Entering and leaving the car park
- Walking around inside the car park
- Keep current and attract more customers

With our client’s car parks located in two different districts, to define the target users I evaluated the urban landscape of the car park areas and listed the major attractions in Tuen Mun and Tsim Sha Tsui, and screened Hong Kong other districts' urban landscape. I listed down the possible visitors and created a focus group based on possible visitors’ purpose and urban landscape.

TST neighborhood: stores, shopping malls, hotels, harbor 
TST neighborhood: stores, shopping malls, hotels, harbor
Tuen Mun neighborhood: shopping mall, stores, housing and residentials area, markets, parks, industrial building, open space

Research

Interview Insight

Price:
- I’ll make sure the parking price and my purchasing amount and return value is equal.
- For working, will go for day park
- Free parking in the shopping mall
- Generally prefer street parking, as they are cheaper.
- I avoid car parks at an increasing rate per hour.

Availability:
- If there’s no empty parking spot available, I will find another parking area. Don’t like to wait.
- Indoor car park availability lights are good to have.

Distance:
- The closer to the destination the better. Especially if I carry heavy equipment.
- Closer to destination, will be better for my kids.
- Don’t mind to walk 5 minutes more, if there’s car park with better price.

Weather:
- Prefer indoor car park in rainy season.

Car size:
- Will look for a car park that can fit my van.

Parking area:
- Sometimes it took me a while to look for my car and the entrance to the building

Payment:
- I prefer cashless payment.

Sorted Insight

Major parking satisfaction lies before entering the parking area (pre-parking). In addition the shorter time spent in finding the spot and walking in the car park area (parking) satisfied the visitors.
Benchmark in the pre-parking experience:

Parking expenses needs to be equal to the return value (and purchasing amount)

Range by value:
1. Availability (Benchmark decision only occurs once there’s available spot.)
2. Price & Distance (+ weather) are interchangeable, depending on their circumstances.
3. Car size / type
4. Payment type

We decided to focus more in the pre-parking experience and opted out “find parking spot” as it depended on the existing car park system.

Persona

Make it

The main problem we wanted to solve were:
- Increase car park accessibility (information and availability)
- Comfortable customer experience starting from:
- Finding the route to the car park
- Entering and leaving the car park
- Walking around inside the car park
- Keep current and attract more customers