Introduction

Public Transit in Google Maps

Hi! Thank you for consenting to participating in this interview today!

It will take about 15-20 minutes. The purpose of this study is to investigate

  1. How users currently use public transit features in Google Maps.
  2. Current and near-future deployment of AI in Google Maps. This is a personal study to critique and redesign Google Maps for personal development and showcase on my portfolio. Your answers will not be shared outside of the scope of this study, and all published insights will be anonymized.

General Transit Questions (10min)

  1. Tell me a bit about your experiences with public transit in NYC.
    1. How long have you been living in NYC?
  2. Walk me through how you would typically plan a transit trip given you have to travel from your current location to the MET museum.
    1. What do you like most about this particular navigation app?
    2. How often do you choose the first suggested route over others?
    3. What specific factors influence your choice of transit app most?
      1. Can you describe a specific situation where your favourite navigation app was particularly helpful?
    4. Can you describe a specific situation where your favourite navigation app was particularly frustrating?
  3. Do you use this navigation app in other countries / regions?
    1. Were there any differences in functionalities of the app between NYC and [the other region]?
  4. Why do you prefer x app over others? (Google Maps, Transit, Apple Maps, CityMapper) [refer to their survey result]

Google Maps Specific Questions (5min)

Lets focus now on Google Maps in particular.

  1. What are your thoughts on updates provided by Google Maps on subway service changes?
  2. When answering the question on rating your trust in public transit information provided by navigation apps, you answered: [participant's value]. Could you elaborate on this rating? What would it take for you to rank differently?
    1. prompt to get them to elaborate why (whether its a privacy / preference / wrong answers issue?)

AI Related Questions (5min)

Lets shift gears towards AI features.

  1. Google has its own AI-powered assistant, Gemini. Gemini is designed to integrate information across Google apps to provide personalized insights. Do you currently use Gemini?
    1. If yes, what do you primarily use Gemini for?
      1. Have you ever used Gemini with Google Maps?
    2. In October 2024, Google released new features for google maps that incorporate Gemini. Between October till now, have you noticed any new AI features in Google Maps?