Background
The San Francisco International Airport (SFO) is a major hub for visitors and for ride-hailing services. SFO has implemented designated pickup locations for services such as Uber and Lyft. In spite of SFO’s efforts, passengers have reported confusion and frustration with the current system. Research of the app experience at SFO has found that first-time visitors are among those who struggle the most.
The research was carried out to better understand the problems first-time travelers encounter when using these ride-hailing services and to pinpoint potential areas of improvement. The current study's findings will be crucial for enhancing the general pickup experience for passengers as well as for improving the onboarding procedure and ensuring a favorable first impression of the ride-hailing ecosystem.
Our journey began with a curiosity to understand the pick-up experiences of ride-hailing apps at San Francisco International Airport.
Address our
Bias
We had recently taken an uber from SFO ourselves so it was necessary that we try our best to avoid our pre-formed bias towards the research topic.
Personal Experience Bias: Having previously used Uber/Lyft at SFO, our personal experiences (positive & negative) could colour our expectations and perceptions of the general user experience.
Expectation Bias:
We had preconceived notions about what the experience should be like based on online reviews, reports, word of mouth, which can skew our observations and conclusions.
Accessibility Bias:
Not considering the challenges faced by travelers with disabilities or those requiring special accommodations in accessing ride-hailing services.
Time-of-Day Bias:
Our experiences or observations during a specific time of day (like rush hour or late night) might not accurately represent the experience at other times.
Technology Proficiency Bias:
Assuming that all users are equally comfortable and proficient with technology and ride-hailing apps, which might not be the case, especially for older travellers or those less familiar with such services.
Cultural and Language Bias:
Overlooking the difficulties that non-English speakers or people from different cultural backgrounds might face in using ride-hailing services at an American airport.
Background
context
57.7M
passengers
travelled to and from SFO
SECONDARY RESEARCH
11th
busiest
airport in the world
12M
rides
from SFO; Uber & Lyft combined
According to
reports
The pickup experience at SFO is generally positive
There have been some complaints about long wait times and difficult-to-find drivers and pickup spot.
To improve the pickup experience, SFO has implemented a number of measures, including adding more signs and increasing the number of designated pickup locations.
Hence,
it became crucial for us to visit the airport to understand and observe
the cues and layout of pick-up points at SFO.
and while we were at it,
we intercepted a few folks at the pickup point to understand their pain-points.
Observational study
Our visit to the airport helped us make a map to better visualize the layout of ground transportation at SFO.
We had several hypotheses,
some validated, some not
to find out what's true,
we decided to conduct interviews to ask people about their first time experience.
for recruitment,
we put out posters in and around our college campus offering free coffee in exchange of an interview
We conducted 20 interviews,
and we took into consideration that there would be a recency bias and people might not clearly remember their first time experience.
Key Insights
SFO has confusing way-finding and lack of information on pick up points
I went upstairs and asked someone for directions. I had to figure it out myself
Wayfinding can be confusing, with unclear signage and minimal information about ride-hailing services.
Some users had difficulty finding the pickup points and gates.
The abundance of information at the airport, including digital displays and announcements, can overwhelm travelers making it difficult to focus on specific instructions for ride-hailing services.
In order to change levels, users with luggage or disability need to use an elevator located at the very end of the airport.
I had a trolley and couldn't use the escalator so had to ask someone to find elevator to reach the pickup spot.
There is minimal signage indicating wheel accessible ways to reach the pickup points
Users who need to re-login to the app require a US phone number which most of the international travelers don't have.
I was logged out of my Uber app and couldn't login because it asked for a US phone number.
I had to buy a temporary sim from the airport to help me login and book an Uber.
Even when at the pick-up spot,
the Uber app doesn't mention which
level the cab is going to arrive at.
I was logged out of my Uber app and couldn't login because it asked for a US phone number.
I had to buy a temporary sim from the airport to help me login and book an Uber.
