Define – WAYFINDER DEPTHS QUALITATIVE FINDINGS 1993

Description

This 1993 qualitative study assessed how London bus users find, understand and use information. Fifteen accompanied depth interviews explored factors shaping information needs: personality, system and geographic familiarity, map/timetable skill, situational context and place. No single information solution fits all. Respondents segmented by personality: ‘Happy-go-lucky’ cobble information; ‘DIY Planners’ seek maximal detail; ‘Helpless Children’ want step-by-step human help (telephone/conductor); and ‘Omnipotent Avoiders’ reject buses unless radically simplified. Map/timetable skill divides into lovers, phobics and pragmatists—pragmatists are the key target for simplification. Situational factors (trip purpose, origin/destination, who you’re with) alter needs. Practical recommendations: clearer, illuminated stop signage (number, name, roundel), directional route slips and rolling internal route displays, leaflet dispensers, freephone/DMI for map-phobics, clear interchange indexes and timely updates on route/fare changes. Next step: a weekend omnibus survey to quantify proportions of lovers, pragmatists and phobics and guide whether to tweak or redesign information systems.