World Usability Day: Parking Meter Study

C​hallenge

User Centric and the partners of the UXalliance conducted a global study on parking meters to discover patterns in the design of parking meters around the world.

User Centric Approach

Each UXalliance partner conducted an expert evaluation on a typical parking meter in their country. The reviewers detailed the process of paying for a parking space and reported any issues or problems they encountered. These reviews were then compared to find common challenges of using a parking meter as well as outlining recommendations to overcome those challenges.

Result

The study uncovered that no two parking meters are identical and the complexity of operating parking meters varies considerably. There is significant difference, for example, between the auto-detecting parking meter in Tokyo and the complex and error-prone parking ticket dispenser in Amsterdam. Ultimately, several factors that influence complexity were identified and described including space selection, instructions, buttons and flows, number of tasks, payment methods, feedback, how to display tickets, and error correction.

This study clearly demonstrates the advantages of the UXalliance. By making use of local knowledge of partner companies, the study was able to obtain information on parking meters throughout the world (e.g. specific parking rules and the acceptance of paying for a parking space) in a short period.

Download full study.