Case study · Today x Department of Transport and Planning
Victorian Public Transport, Contactless Ticketing Pilot
Research to make sure Victoria’s new myki readers work for everyone, without slowing the gates.
- The customer
- Public transport commuters and station staff
- Team
- A second researcher, a delivery lead and me
- Skills
The problem
With contactless payments coming, the Department needed to know the new readers were intuitive, accessible and accepted by the public, and wouldn’t cause friction at gates or add to congestion.
How I solved it
- 01Led research direction and synthesis, triangulating three methods in real stations.
- 02Ran a diary study: 296 submissions over 8 weeks, before and after installation.
- 03Observed 42 hours on site and recorded more than 6,700 taps.
- 04Held 112 intercept interviews with customers and staff, prioritising people with accessibility needs.
Outcome
Customers rated tapping 20% easier with the new readers. Our recommendations, including clearer balance text, promoting “hold to extend display” and beeps matched to station noise, shaped the final specification before statewide rollout.
Inside the work
What I learned
Results reached saturation by week 2 of observation. Next time I’d cap fieldwork at 3 to 4 weeks.