I spent a good amount of few months researching and designing product features for PTV's Myki ticketing platform which comprises of web & mobile touchpoints in the digital world and fair number of kiosks, ticketing counters, 3rd party shops that service the myki ticketing cards.
Victoria's myki platform had less known constraint around time delay to reflect online top-ups. Most passengers barely knew this existed, but those who did would prioritise using physical machines for instant top-ups. Our data showed machine coverage was patchy across the network, and COVID-19 restrictions made physical touchpoints less viable.
We eventually developed a technical solution using NFC on mobile phones to top up Myki cards without requiring kiosk machines. This made it convenient for passengers to top up their ticketing cards safely and efficiently.
Research that led to the insights
Analysing millions of transaction records revealed patterns invisible to individual experience. But the real insights came from connecting quantitative patterns with qualitative conversations at stations. This was challenging due to lockdown restrictions, but I remember buying a stack of Myki cards and giving them away as a token of reward to the user interviews.
The data showed machine preference; station conversations explained why people tolerated inconvenience for certainty. You need both signal detection and human validation when working at this scale.
Strategic design insights
The myki topup network delay forced us to reframe the problem. Instead of designing around constraints, we used alternative technology to eliminate them entirely.
Transport infrastructure has to work for rushing commuters, unfamiliar tourists, and accessibility-dependent users all at once. Structured research methods helped us capture that complexity without losing design coherence. Meanwhile, modular design frameworks gave us both consistency and adaptability, components doubled as governance tools that maintained quality standards while still letting us iterate quickly.
The NFC solution addressed immediate user needs while preparing infrastructure for a digital-first transport future. Good structured design can serve current problems and future strategies at the same time.
Design process learnings
Combining quantitative transaction analysis with qualitative field validation turned out to be necessary for transport-scale design decisions. Neither approach alone captured the full picture of user needs and technical constraints.
Platform-specific requirements also had a big influence on UX architecture. Early collaboration with platform teams prevents costly redesigns and makes for better planning.
Transport infrastructure demands methodical approaches that balance immediate user needs with long-term operational requirements. The design frameworks we built became the foundation for both good user experience and operational sustainability.
Designing for millions of daily users taught me that structured thinking isn't about removing humanity from design, it's about finding ways to scale empathy through rigorous methodology.
If you want to know more about the work that I delivered at PTV, check my case study here.