LA Metro SMART Grant Case Study  

Background - LA Metro and the Hollywood Bowl launched a federally funded pilot program enabling concertgoers to purchase round-trip Metro passes directly through the Hollywood Bowl. Riders could chase the passes either with their event tickets or in a separate transaction. The program aimed to measure how integrated ticketing affected usability, awareness, and perceptions of Metro service. 

Solution/Deliverables - ThinkNow designed and executed a comprehensive user experience evaluation to study both the purchase and use of QR code Metro passes to determine how well the pilot worked. As part of this project, our team ran moderated and unmoderated usability tests through UserTesting.com and in-field usage tasks through MFour’s Directed Shopping platform.  We targeted participants who lived in Los Angeles County, planned to attend Hollywood Bowl events, and used or were open to using Metro. 

ThinkNow built and tested two parallel usability studies that compared the experience of buying a Metro pass with an event ticket versus buying one through a follow-up email. Researchers analyzed how users navigated the site, what confused them, and how they rated each step. The third study examined real-world use of QR code passes as riders traveled to the Hollywood Bowl, capturing behavior, friction points, and emotional reactions. 

Our team managed all phases of the project, including design, recruitment, moderation, incentives, analysis, and reporting. At the end of the project, we delivered a 40-slide findings deck with visuals, quotes, and quantitative ratings that detailed pain points and offered clear recommendations for improving both the purchase and travel experience.