Design Bloc
Problem
Bus stops in the Upper West Midtown District of Atlanta are not providing adequate shelter, safety, and additional amenities for it’s riders or it’s community.
Solution
Create a bus stop with community centered design that incorporates the necessary features of a safe and sustainable bus stop while also reflecting the values of the neighborhood.
Ideation:
To begin, our team conducted research to identify the our core stakeholder and the problem areas that needed to be addressed with the new design.
Core Stakeholders:
- Grocery shoppers
- Work commuters
- Tourists
- Pedestrians
Problem Areas:
- lack of protection from elements
- unaware of routes/local destinations
- unsafe/dark
- unaware of route changes/updates
- dirty stops
Key Features:
- safety button (contact emergency services)
- bus tracking
- accessibility
- disposal
- lighting
- seating
Design Inspiration & Prototype Features:
The goal was to integrate the industrial past, current culture/technology, and sustainable future of the community into the structure.
- We decided to include the railway beam features on the side walls of the stop because it paid homage to the railroad system that initially brought industry to the Atlanta area. It serves as a subtle reminder of the history of the area and creates a durable, sturdy look.
- The call button located on the front of the stop gave bus stop users a quick, easy way to connect to emergency services. The button would be accompanied by a speaker that allows the user to communicate with the emergency responder. This feature was inspired by the “Emergency” stations commonly found on college campuses.
- Garbage and recycling bins were placed on the outside of the side wall so adequate disposal options were accessible to both riders and pedestrians without interrupting the comfort of the main waiting area.
- The roof was designed with an intentional curvature so that water and debris would not build up on top of it.
- The mural across the back wall was an opportunity to implement an element of neighborhood culture into the external display. We decided on a tree mural because the West Midtown District is heavily wooded and the trees help distinguish the personality of the area.
- A solar panel on the roof of the stop will help supply energy.
- “THE DISTRICT AT HOWELL MILL” is engraved on the front side of the roof to allow people to easily identify the stop and the area while also adding an element of neighborhood branding to the bus stop. This choice was inspired by the engraving on the Cascade Heights bus stop.
- A bus-tracking map that displays the bus routes and locations of active buses was included to enable riders to have an accurate view of the bus network at any time of the day. Additionally, showed an updated bus schedule that corresponded to the movement of the buses on the map.
- The light fixture was built into the ceiling of the stop and could be activated/deactivated respectively during sunrise and sunset depending on the ambient light around the stop. Additional lights were also build in to signal the amount of time before the next bus arrived.
- Hooks were added onto the front support beams so that riders could hang their bags, groceries, coats, etc. while the waited.
- L-shaped bench seating was included to maximize seating space within the stop while still leaving enough sheltered space to meet the city’s accessibility requirements.
Challenges:
The the most prominent challenge was creating space within the guidelines of the design restrictions. The first few iterations of our prototype were limited space for the riders, and did not meet the accessibility requirements.
To address this problem, we narrowed the size of the supporting structure to create more room and changed the orientation of the seating. Initially the thick, bulky support beams created a smaller, darker space than the intended design. We found that we could maintain the sturdiness of the structure with less material, so we redesigned the supporting poles and roof to have a thinner, sleek shape. Additionally, we reoriented the benches to be in an L-shape one side of the stop. This allowed us to maintain the same amount of seating while opening up space for riders who need accessibility accommodations.
Rider Interaction Storyboard:
Results:
Our team was able to craft a final design that addressed all of the problem areas identified by our research. The final structure included adequate seating, lighting, and disposal, a sustainable power source, additional amenities for comfort, including bag hooks and charging outlets, and an active bus map/schedule that displays multiple bus routes and accurate Etas. Based on qualitative feedback from the community regarding our proposed design, this bus stop satisfies, and in some cases exceeds, the expectations of community members. As designers we are looking forward to seeing this bus stop transition into production and our ideas come to fruition.
