Case study · Transportation & mobility
A smart, easy-to-use app for Mumbai local train commuters. It shows real-time train updates, suggests alternate routes and makes digital ticketing simple, for daily riders, occasional travelers and tourists.
My role
I aimed to build a seamless experience that turns commuting into a simple, enjoyable journey for everyone. On this project I worked as UX researcher, UX designer, UI designer, motion designer and graphic designer.
The problem
Urban commuters face unreliable train schedules, a lack of real-time updates, and difficulty finding the best route from point A to point B.
Goal: an app that gives the best train options between two stations, plus live train status and real-time alerts for delays or cancellations, so people can plan their journeys and travel with ease.
daily commuters on the Mumbai local train network
Research
Foundational research began with four users aged 20 to 35, using a set of questions to understand their needs through qualitative research. I then widened it with a mixed-method approach that combined qualitative and quantitative insights.
User interviews · qualitative
Office workers, students and tourists, to understand frustrations and behavior in real-world scenarios.
Onsite observation · shadowing
Observing how people use the app in real time at railway stations.
Survey · quantitative
An online survey asked what people wanted most.
Insights
The persona profile keeps the team focused on user needs and challenges, so the product ends up both useful and enjoyable. Pain points came straight from what people said and what I saw at the stations.
People check schedules several times a day but struggle with the interface.
Tourists and first-time users found the app confusing.
At the station, people doubted the train location shown in the app.
Platform change notifications often arrived late, causing confusion.
When a train was delayed or cancelled, riders switched to Google Maps.
Ideation
A storyboard put a hypothetical commute on paper and helped decide which actions the app had to support. From there I moved through low-fidelity wireframes, high-fidelity wireframes and a clickable prototype.
The solution
Select your starting station, choose your destination, and instantly get a list of trains with their real-time locations. Four parts of the app carry the experience.
Yatri is your one-stop solution for navigating Mumbai's bustling local train network with ease. Whether you ride every day or only now and then, it gives you a smooth, dependable experience.
The top of the home screen lets people pick how they commute: Local Train, Metro, Mono, Bus or Ferry.
Riders did not trust the location the old app showed, so this screen is built to earn that trust.
The News and Announcements section keeps people informed with real-time updates such as delays, platform changes and alternate routes. A clean, visible announcement bar gives quick access to critical information, and personalized updates build trust. By reducing stress and offering actions people can take, it makes travel feel reliable.
The Explore section combines function with emotion. Features like Famous Places and Mumbai Foods match what people are curious about, and vibrant visuals with simple navigation invite them to look around. It turns the app from a travel tool into something people enjoy opening.
Impact
Design matters as much as function. To get people engaging with the product, we started with the Explore tab, which lets users interact with content, and added a referral feature that encourages them to share the app.
user engagement, as reported for this project
At the Yatri event at Mumbai Division CSMT, live train locations for Western Railway were unveiled. With precise GPS, commuters can view and share a train's live location straight from the schedule list.
Extras
Beyond the screens, I made graphics and short animated GIFs for Yatri.