EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

More and more people choose to use public transportation instead of private motorised vehicles. However, amongst the elderly generation there is still the tendency to use cars over public transport. Wiener Linien, as the provider of Vienna´s public transportation system, wanted to find out reasons for this observation and, maybe even more importantly, solutions to facilitate change.

Goal

The project consisted of two main goals that were to be tackled. Wiener Linien, on the one hand, wanted to find out the reasons for why elderly people tend to use public transportation less often than younger people and instead prefer driving cars. On the other hand, the goal was to develop solutions that would facilitate the switch to public transportation for the elderly generation.

Methodology

To achieve this goal, the design thinking method was applied. This included conducting a large number of interviews (n = 76) to gain insights into what drives the behavior of the target group. Based on the key insights gained from these interviews, ideas were generated and then turned into prototypes. The prototypes were tested with potential customers and adjusted according to the feedback received.

Results

The process revealed that elderly people struggle with comfort on public transport, have issues with using digital devices and the desire to keep their autonomy. The project, therefore, resulted in two recommendations for the partner.

Firstly, Wiener Linien should implement easy to use screens at stations which help elderly people to navigate through the city more comfortably. Furthermore, there should be key features implemented which make using the public transportation system more attractive, like printing the route, sending it to your mobile device, requesting cleaning for trash in stations, a GPS-based pedestrian navigation system (AR) which can be scanned with your phone to show the path to transition between two lines or suggesting the most convenient entrance into the mode of transport. Secondly, a campaign which highlights the autonomy gained and the positive environmental impact of using public transportation addresses the insights gained from the customer interviews.

Cooperation Partner

• Wiener Linien GmbH & Co KG
  Erdbergstraße 202
  1030 Wien
  Austria
  https://www.wienerlinien.at/ 

Contact Person

• Lilian Izsak - lilian.izsak@wienerlinien.at

• Ronja Sanders - ronja.sanders@wienerlinien.at

Student Team

• Chiara Harisch

• Philip Henrichsmeier

• Nicolas Mayerhofer

• Joseph Damian Rainer

Project Manager

• Erik Kommol, M.Sc.

• Carola Wandres, M.Sc.