obso1337.org

Friday, before heading to Pittsburgh, I had my first experience with the Yahoo! Maps traffic report. I was less than impressed with their execution. When I realised how bad the interface really was, I began recording my actions and ended up with a mini user-test.

User information:

• Female
• 18-25 years old
• Corrective lenses
• Experienced computer user
• Experienced internet/www user
• Experienced with online maps
• Some experience with Yahoo!
• No experience with online traffic maps

User task:

• To determine traffic issues including accidents and congestion on Interstate 270 in Montgomery county, Maryland.

User expectations:

• To be able to easily find a map of I270
• To visually interpret traffic patterns and accidents

Find traffic map:

1. Opened up web browser and navigated to maps.yahoo.com
2. Entered zip code and clicked “Get Map”, map of area loads, I270 is not clearly maked but user is familiar with area and assumes it is I270
3. User had trouble finding the “View Traffic On Map” link
   • “I didnt notice it right away, it just looks like a picture and not something I should click”
4. User clicked “View Traffic On Map”, traffic map key appears

Find hazards:

1. User noticed hazard icons on map and moused over one
2. Information about the incident pops up
3. User clicks on icon, additional information about the incident pops up
   • “Finding incidents is easy, the icons are recognizable and it is useful to be able to click for more information”

Find traffic congestion information:

1. User looked at map and noticed I270 is a color in the speed key
2. User thought traffic is moderate to severe
   • “The road is the same color as what is in the key, but I dont think traffic is really that bad this time of the day. I don’t get it.”
3. User clicked on map arrows to reposition to a different part of highway
4. User noticed colored circles on map and tried to look them up in the key, user was confused by the sparcity of the circles and wasnt sure what they meant
5. User tried hovering over the circles for additional information
   • “What are the circles? They’re the traffic key colors but they arnt all over the map. How can I find traffic for my area?”
6. User “zoomed” map out to look at a larger area
   • “The circles look like highlights around the road now and I can see the traffic for I495, but not my area”
7. User was unable to find traffic speed information for her area

The Good:

• Traffic incidents were very easy to find and interpret. User felt comfortable finding information this way.

The Bad:

• Using a key color to draw major roads is confusing and lead to user error.
• User was confused by the colored circles and their purpose because they were not clearly explained.

Possible Fixes:

• Draw roads in a color other than a key color.
• Define the circles in the key or use a different method to display traffic congestion than the circles. Highlighting could be more effective and less confusing.

As a side note, after this trial I was curious how other services do traffic maps. Traffic.com, for example, does not use a key color to draw roads. It also highlights the road instead of using circle indicators. Traffic congestion (and lack thereof) is very easy to interpret almost immediately and it is easy to see which areas are reported and which areas are not.

seele :: Mar.28.2005 :: General, Usability :: 2 Comments »

Trackback this post |