What is KMB?
-KMB is a bus company operating franchised services in Hong Kong
-The largest bus company in Hong Kong by fleet size and number of bus routes
-As of Oct 2019, KMB operates a fleet of 4073 buses and 642 routes in Kowloon and the New Territories
Problems
To many advertisements
I am a frequent user of the app. Whenever I need to catch a bus and open the app, there is an advertisement popping up which occupies the whole screen. This creates lots of hustle and bustle since I am always in a hurry and while I am running, I need to find the “close” button on the screen. It is not always at the same location, sometimes in the right-hand corner, sometimes in the centre! What even worse is, after a few seconds you closed the ad, another one popped up! Besides, there are two more places for the ads on the main page while it is very easy for users tabbing them accidentally.
One of the assumptions that the KMB app made is that users always reserve enough time to arrive at the bus stop before the bus arrives and will never in a hurry. In this case, they will have time for the advertisements and explore the app while waiting in line. However, the actual situation is often the opposite. It is even more frustrating for the elderly especially if they are visually impaired. They will struggle a lot on how to close the advertisement and might eventually miss the bus. I believe the users won’t enjoy any of the advertisements under such circumstances.
Accuracy
Inconsistent estimated arrival time between the app and the screens at bus stops creates frustration for users since they have no idea which one is real and trustworthy. Sometimes it is more accurate to refer to the app but sometimes not! However, I guess this part is more related to the system part than UX design.
Suggestion
I understand that the ads help generate lots of profit which could in return supports the maintenance cost of the system. However, the company shall put user experience in a higher priority since users have other transportation choices such as ferry and Mass Transport Railway System(MTR).
The ads could be placed at a more appropriate location like under the “Shopping” and “Live Chat” since users are not at the critical moments and they probably have more time to explore the ads.
