City of Melbourne: To Improve Parking Availability for Melbourne Commuters

Section  A

Problem Statement

Melbourne has become more dependent on car travel since COVID compared with similar cities across the world. A major source of congestion in Melbourne's CBD is the time drivers spend searching for a parking space. With a high rate of car ownership, this search can be difficult on average, drivers spend 17 hours a year searching for a parking spot within Melbourne city. This forces Melbourne commuters to continually drive around the city until one is free, increasing congestion, pollution and wasting time. The root cause of this frustration and inefficiency is the absence of real-time data on available parking spaces, which leaves drivers in frustration.

How might we provide drivers with real-time parking information to reduce search times and ease congestion?

Introduction

This report outlines the analysis and design activities being completed during the onboarding iteration of our project to improve parking availability in Melbourne for Sara. It includes the following epics; Data Insights , Real-Time Parking availability and Empowering Eco-Conscious Commuters for a Greener Melbourne. Also includes user stories, and acceptance criteria that guide our solution of creating a website for desktop and mobile use. So, it will help us as a team to ensure our solutions stay aligned with user needs and project goals.

Project Overview

The project overview gives:

Our team is building a website to help Melbourne commuters find available parking more quickly in the CBD. The website will use historical data to show parking availability and trends. Our goal is to reduce traffic congestion and improve their commuting experience especially for peak hours. This is due to the rapid population growth and high car ownership have made CBD parking increasingly difficult to find. Commuters waste time circling for spots and adding to congestion. Despite available open data, users lack a clear, accessible way to understand and act on it.

Target Audience

The primary audience for this project is Melbourne commuters who are short-term visitors to the CBD. These drivers are looking for public parking spaces and regularly face the daily challenges of the city's "car problem," including traffic congestion, difficulty finding parking, longer commute times, and higher fuel costs. This target group is directly impacted by the inefficiency of the current parking system.

News articles:

○ Parking improvement works | City of Melbourne

○ Australia's biggest city has a car problem. What should Melbourne do to fix it? - ABC News

○ Melbourne Transport Strategy 2030: 50,000 cars off the roads | news.com.au — Australia’s leading news site for latest headlines

○ Melbourne proposes new parking scheme to keep city moving - Inside Local

○ Melbourne CBD set for parking overhaul as part of council plans to reduce congestion - ABC News

Onboarding iteration

What is being delivered:

 In this iteration, our team completed several foundational design artefacts to support user-centred development. 

Finalised personas representing key Melbourne commuter types
Developed three core epics, supported by detailed user stories and acceptance criteria
Created an Empathy Map to capture commuter frustrations, goals, and behaviours
Used the Lotus Blossom technique to explore and expand solution directions
Organised and tagged all requirements and artefacts in LeanKit

During the onboarding iteration, our team will deliver our website based on Data insights, real time parking insights and CO2 emissions awareness. Firstly, for data insights we will create a bar graph to display car ownership and population growth in Melbourne. Secondly for real time parking insights we will design and build a basic interface showing live parking availability in CBD using open datasets. Finally for CO2 emissions awareness we will develop a feature that visualises how long parking searches contribute to increasing carbon emissions in line charts. 

Intent:

To validate our understanding of user needs and project scope through structured research and artefact creation. This iteration focused on aligning the team’s direction through shared documentation and early design thinking.

Benefits:

A strong foundation of user empathy informs future interface and feature design
Clear problem framing and exploration via the Lotus Blossom helps generate innovative ideas
Defined acceptance criteria make future validation easier
LeanKit now contains organised stories and tasks to guide the next sprint

Current Iteration

EPIC 1.0 Data Insights

Must Have

As a Melbourne commuter, I want to accessible insights into key growth trends so that I can understand their full impact on urban infrastructure and congestion.

This epic helps everyday Melbourne commuters with data insights that may influence individual behavior. and deeper understanding on car congestion in the CBD.

Benefits:

● Feeling informed about city-wide challenges can foster a sense of shared responsibility and community, encouraging commuters to contribute to solutions rather than just being passive victims of congestion

US 1.1 As a Melbourne commuter I want to know insights on the growth of car ownership so that I can quantify its impact on urban infrastructure.

US 1.2  As a Melbourne commuter, I want to know the increase of Melbourne’s population in CBD so that I can understand the impact on city congestion.

EPIC 2 .0  Real-Time Parking availability

Must Have

As a Melbourne commuter, I want to view real-time parking and historical data to guide me to an available spot, so that I can reduce my search time, lower my emissions, and contribute to a more efficient and sustainable city.

This epic enables commuters to quickly secure a parking space with minimal circling, and to alleviate the "car park problem" in Melbourne's CBD by providing transparency and guidance around parking availability.

Benefits:

●  Commuters cut the average 17 hours a year spent searching for parking, navigating directly to guaranteed open spots for a more predictable and less stressful journey.

● Less time spent driving and idling while searching for parking means less fuel is consumed. This directly translates to cost savings for the commuter on a daily basis.

● To help drivers find legal parking spaces and could potentially include features that alert them when their paid time is expiring, significantly reducing the risk of receiving a parking fine.

● Access to historical and predictive data enables commuters to strategically time their arrival, avoiding peak hours and ensuring a smoother trip from the outset.

US 2.1 As a Melbourne commuter, I want to easily find available CBD parking spots so that I can minimize my driving time by quickly securing a parking space.

US 2.2 As a Melbourne commuter, I want to see predicted parking spot availability for specific areas and streets, so I can quickly find parking and avoid congested zones.

US 2.3 As a Melbourne commuter, I want to understand historical parking availability trends near my destination, enabling me to strategically time my arrival and prevent unnecessary delay.

EPIC 3.0 Empowering Eco-Conscious Commuters for a Greener Melbourne

Should Have

As a Melbourne commuter, I want to easily access information that helps me choose environmentally friendly ways to travel, so I can personally contribute to a greener city and embrace a sustainable lifestyle.

This epic integrates various sustainable transport options to provide commuters with the tools and information they need to reduce their carbon footprint, minimize time spent searching for parking, and contribute to a healthier, more livable urban environment.

Benefits:

● Clear understanding of the positive environmental impact of their choices (e.g., CO2 emissions saved).

● Feeling of contributing to a greener city and sustainable future.

US 3.1

As a Melbourne commuter, I want to see the environmental impact (e.g., CO2 emissions saved) of different travel choices so I can make greener decisions.

US 3.2

As a Melbourne commuter, I want to be shown the "greenest" or most environmentally friendly parking options (e.g., parking near public transport, or less congested areas) when I'm looking for a spot in the CBD, so I can further reduce my carbon footprint and contribute positively to urban air quality.