Designing with Systems
Speedster
A mobile app designed to show how much time drivers actually save by speeding, turning everyday driving behavior into measurable data. By visualizing trip data, cumulative time saved, and social comparisons with friends, the app transforms an invisible habit into a fun gamified experience.
Track Data
See the cumulative amount of time you've saved by speeding.
Manage Trips
Start new trips in-app while data updates in real time.
Race Friends
Connect with friends to see where you're at in the ranks.
Overview
Research consistently shows that speeding provides very small time savings in typical driving conditions, often only a few minutes over long trips. Despite this, drivers widely believe speeding is beneficial, largely due to cognitive bias and overestimation of time saved. Studies of driver psychology show that social comparison, feedback, and gamified metrics can significantly influence driving behavior. These findings suggest that visualizing real-time data can transform invisible driving habits into engaging experiences.
**While the concept explores speeding behavior in a playful way, the project is intended as a design study on how gamification and data visualization can make hidden behavioral patterns more visible to users.**
IDEATION
Drivers Lack:
- understanding actual time saved
- awareness of driving habits
- comparative context with other drivers
IDEATION
Research Q's
- How much time does speeding actually save?
- Do drivers perceive speeding as beneficial?
- How can we display data that gameifies driver behavior?
IDEATION
Insights
- Drivers often overestimate time saved.
- Gamification increases engagement with behavioral data.
Research Finding
Design Insight
Drivers consistently overestimate the time saved by speeding, often believing it saves significantly more time than it actually does.
AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety
This creates a design opportunity for visual feedback. Showing real-time calculations or post-trip breakdowns can show users the reality of how much time they save, further reinforcing engagement with the data.
"Gamification elements such as points, leaderboards, and feedback significantly improve user engagement with behavioral tracking systems."
Deterding et al., Gamification Research
This supports features like leaderboards, friend comparisons, and rankings in the app. Social comparison can transform a passive data tool into an interactive behavioral experience.
Exceeding the speed limit by 5-10 mph typically saves only a few minutes over a 30-minute trip.
U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration
The app's core value proposition should highlight the surprisingly small time saved. The UI should emphasize cumulative time saved over perceived time saved.
Problem statement
Many drivers believe speeding saves significant time, but there is little accessible feedback showing the real impact of speeding behavior.
USER TESTING
First Prototype
Meant for user testing, this prototype showcases onboarding screens, the main dashboard, and even friend group and global rankings.
*Note: No user testing was conducted for this app design. Check out other pages for projects that contain user testing.
Creation and organization
Design System
Combining alike colors, font size, buttons sizes for brand and app consistency across screens.
Colors
Type
Big title
Title
Subhead
Body Bold
Body
Details
Widgets
Buttons
Creation and organization
Variants and Components
Adding new states and animating between states.
FINAL — DEMO VIDEO
Full Prototype
Cleaning up design aspects and ensure consistency between screens. Implementing final components and styles.
Speedster Final
Final Prototype
The final prototype of Speedster demonstrates how real-time driving data can be transformed into a playful, interactive experience that encourages safer driving behavior. By combining gamification with clear visual feedback, the app makes hidden speeding habits visible and motivates users to stay more aware of their speed on the road.