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Most people don’t think about public bus routes as design thinking—but one recent experiment in Shanghai might change your mind.
Faced with declining public transit use, Shanghai’s transit authority introduced a bold idea: instead of centrally planning new routes, they let regular people design them. Commuters could vote on stops, routes were dynamically adjusted based on demand, and in some areas, routes were co-created by large groups of daily riders.
The result? Higher ridership, better satisfaction, and operational efficiency. But more than that, it's a great metaphor for how we should be approaching UX and product design in digital experiences.
In web, mobile and AI-based products, it’s easy to fall into the trap of “deciding for the user”—launching features based on assumptions or executive instinct. But what if, like Shanghai’s buses, the people who will rely on what we build had a seat at the table earlier?
We’ve found that involving real users earlier in the design process—often with simple clickable prototypes or quick feedback loops—leads to:
You don’t need expensive research or massive logistics to involve users. Think simple surveys, testing prototypes on actual users from your target group, or beta programs that listen more than they sell.
One of our clients recently launched their app faster than expected because early testing surfaced one clear pattern: most of their users only used two core flows. We focused design energy on those, simplified the rest and got real-world validation before a single line of production code.
The best test of your UX isn’t what your team thinks. It’s what your users can do without asking for help.
If you’re building a digital product—web, mobile or AI-driven—and wondering how to bring real users into your design process without slowing down, feel free to reach out. Happy to share more ideas or help your team make UX feel a little more like a co-designed bus route.