San Francisco Recreation & Parks manages more than 230 public parks, making it the first US city where every resident lives within a 10-minute walk to a park. I redesigned their mobile picnic booking flow to make planning an event as easy as a walk in the park.
My Role
For this redesign, I undertook summative research, interactive prototyping, and user testing:
- usability heuristic evaluation
- task-based usability tests
- lo-fidelity wireframe testing
- hi-fidelity prototyping
The Problem Space
SF Rec & Parks were interested in designing for the following target persona:
Target user
- Resident of San Francisco
- Adult (>21 and <65)
- No relevant disabilities
- No car (needs to use public transportation
- Reads and writes English
- Primarily uses phone
User goal
- Wants to have a picnic for their birthday (weekend in late October)
- Picnic table, nice location
- Can have alcohol
- Near a bathroom
- No car (needs to use public transportation)
Then, I recruited 5 participants for task-based usability testing of the current experience. The tests ranged from 10-30 minutes and revealed critical issues and opportunities in the picnic booking flow.
FRAGMENTED ENTRY
Users encountered many competing paths into the booking flow and were forced to register before browsing available options.
RIGID FILTERS
Users had to commit to strict filters without knowing if they’d rule out too many options.
LIMITED BROWSING
Users couldn’t easily explore alternate dates or nearby venues that closely match their needs.
SOLUTION PROMPT
How might we design a more forgiving flow that supports casual browsers and flexible planners?
The redesigned booking flow needed to accommodate users who sought to explore options that satisfy their needs in terms of date/time, amenities, and allowances. However, these interviews uncovered how unforgiving the current search flow was – users were unable to easily modify their search or understand the best alternatives.
KEY DECISION #1
Multi-Select Dates
PROBLEM users must choose a specific park before viewing availability and are limited to searching one time slot at a time, making it harder to explore options that fit their schedule.
SOLUTION in the redesigned flow, users are able to select multiple date/time ranges that work for their schedule before they are presented with parks that suit their availability and needs
Other key design decisions include:
- Surveying user needs upfront to enable a richer, more convenient discovery process
- Structuring content to prioritise just-in-time information that supports user action
- Shifting to an availability-first model that lets users find venues that fit their schedule – not force their schedule around a specific park
The full redesign can be viewed in the following 1-minute prototype walkthrough…
Prototype Walkthrough
The Outcomes
1) REDUCED FRICTION FOR FIRST-TIME USERS
Replaced dense forms with a friendly survey and helpful examples, allowing newcomers to explore park options without needing to know exactly what they’re looking for.
2) FLEXIBLE DISCOVERY
Enabled users to browse parks via map or list view, and explore across multiple dates, times, and venues without being boxed in by rigid filters.
3) ENHANCED WAYFINDING AND CLARITY
Streamlined how rules, amenities, and booking details are presented – helping users make confident choices without feeling overwhelmed.
Want to know more?
If you have any questions about this project, reach out and let’s set up a call.
- Email me at: edwardfraser@berkeley.edu
- Connect on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/edward-fraser/