Transport Canada

Working with the multimodal analytics team, we produced a web portal for managers, analysts, and inspectors to use data science and visualization to analyze, compare and predict transportation trends in aviation, marine, rail, surface, and multimodal.

This dashboard-oriented portal uses a Power BI and HTML/CSS framework with custom visuals. The UX process included persona design, user flow, mood boards, static mockups, wireframes, prototyping in low and high fidelity, and end-user testing.

We transformed disparate data collections into an informational, user-friendly, story-driven analytical tool.

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UX/UI Design, UX Research, Art Direction & Content Design

Research

This complicated project required a comprehensive discovery process. We began by preparing a detailed work plan that proposed an approach and a list of artifacts to be created. Those research artifacts included an Environmental Scan, Interviews with SMEs, Design Thinking workshops (HMWs and Ideation), User Journey, and Persona development. With the results of this data and the insights into how users wanted to interact with a platform, we prepared the design phase by building a detailed user flow.

Design Process

Once the user flow and overall site architecture were established, we explored several styling approaches, including a light version and a dark version. While the insight we gathered showed that the analyst users would prefer a dark version, the light mode was selected by management. The solution was to provide both and allow the user to toggle between the options. 

Another essential part of the design process was finding the correct data visualization to support the overall narrative for the user. We built a dashboard style with multiple pages to reduce the cognitive load of such dense content and data. This helped segment the story for the user, so they were focused on the information from a particular task.

Conclusion

The multimodal analytics portal project was a successful effort to use data science and visualization to improve decision-making and drive business results in the transportation industry. By applying UX best practices and developing a dashboard-oriented portal with a focus on user-friendliness and storytelling, we were able to create a tool that was well-received by managers, analysts, and inspectors. The resulting portal, which was built using a combination of Power BI and HTML/CSS with custom visuals, demonstrated the value of investing in UX design and the benefits of using data-driven approaches to analyze, compare, and predict trends in aviation, marine, rail, surface, and multimodal transportation.