User Experience Across Mobility Modes

Why It Matters

Elevating the passenger experience through thoughtful design directly drives higher ridership and revenue, strengthening the financial and environmental case for expanding public transit systems.

Key Takeaways

• Design directly influences transit ridership and revenue generation
• Safety, cleanliness, and comfort dominate post‑COVID passenger concerns
• User‑experience research at SFO informed “Reach” design principles
• Gensler’s study examined LA Metro, MARTA, WMATA rider typologies
• Effective wayfinding and amenities boost perceived time value for riders

Summary

The MIT Mobility Forum brought together Professor Jinhua Zhao, Gensler principal Dylan Jones, and Sound Transit’s Julie Montgomery to explore how design shapes user experience across airports, public transit, and electric‑vehicle charging. The discussion centered on Gensler’s research‑driven methodology, which began with the highly profitable SFO terminal redesign and evolved into the "Reach" framework for transit systems, aiming to turn emotional comfort into measurable ridership gains.

Gensler’s recent study targeted three U.S. systems—Los Angeles Metro, Atlanta’s MARTA, and Washington, D.C.’s WMATA—using demographically balanced focus groups and nine distinct journey moments. Participants were segmented into all‑around, regular, social, and senior/disabled riders, revealing that safety, cleanliness, and perceived security dominate post‑COVID decision‑making. Issues such as platform lighting, homelessness, odors, and pandemic‑related health fears emerged as critical barriers, while time‑saving benefits and the ability to work or stream media while riding were repeatedly praised.

Quotes from riders underscored these findings: "Waiting on the platform alone is sketchy," and "The station smells like urine," illustrate how negative sensory cues deter use. Conversely, comments like "I can binge‑watch Netflix and not worry about parking" highlight the value of a comfortable, productive environment. Julie Montgomery emphasized that architecture and public art are integral to crafting these experiences, reinforcing Gensler’s belief that design is the common currency of mobility.

The implications are clear: transit agencies that prioritize user‑experience design—through safety‑focused lighting, rigorous cleanliness standards, intuitive wayfinding, and amenity‑rich spaces—can boost ridership, secure political support, and generate broader societal benefits such as reduced congestion and improved air quality. Integrating design research into planning processes is no longer optional; it is a strategic lever for the future of sustainable urban mobility.

Original Description

Working with Los Angeles Metro, Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA), and MARTA (Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority), Gensler combined system level analysis with qualitative user research to identify the key drivers of rider experience. These insights directly inform design strategies that elevate usability, accessibility, and overall satisfaction across diverse mobility environments.

They further applied the approach to review the EV Charging experience, recognizing that specific experience has proved a barrier to EV adoption globally. Beyond battery range and pricing, the actual experience of charging remains a massive barrier to EV adoption. Using examples from Los Angeles and Toronto, the speaker will reveal how physical design can re-frame charging from a frustrating chore into a seamless, hospitality-driven experience.

Lastly, we will also look at how Gensler's user-centric principles of R.E.A.C.H. were pioneered to elevate the airport Journey to transform the physical environments of aviation, in San Francisco International Airport.

Speaker: Dylan Jones, Principal, Global Mobility & Transportation Lead, Gensler