YEAR: 2024-2025

UX CASE STUDY

Flytog  Gates

How to herd travellers through correct gates, and lessen the few instances of accidental double transactions.

At Oslo Gardermoen Airport, we have three areas where customers validate their tickets. The first area is where travellers arrive at the airport and scan their way out. The last two, scans them in. However, these gates come with minor flaws.

At the start of our project, we noticed that some travelers struggled with entering the correct gate after validating their tickets. To address this issue, we introduced a physical divider to clearly indicate which gate to use, helping guide passengers and reduce confusion.

As the project progressed, we encountered a new challenge: double charges. Some passengers were unintentionally billed NOK 290 when validating their digital tickets. This occurred when the NFC chip in their phones came too close to the NFC reader above the ticket scanner, triggering an unintended charge through Apple Wallet. Resolving this issue was complicated by insurance policies with the gate provider, which restricted the changes that could be made to the back-end system and hardware components.

Problem statement

How can we prevent accidental activation of the NFC reader while simultaneously guiding travelers through the correct gate?

Solution Criteria:

  • No backend modifications.

  • No damage to the Validator Access Box (VAB).

  • Low-cost, low-fidelity prototype.

  • Must integrate with the existing divider.

Research & Insights

Customer Support Data

A significant number of customer complaints were related to ticketless travel charges, which included cases of accidental NFC transactions:

  • 2024 Total: 4,138 email inquiries.

  • February 2024: 309 inquiries.

  • December 10, 2024 – Present: 311 inquiries.

NFC Sensitivity Constraints

  • The minimum detection radius for the current NFC readers is 4 cm.

  • NFC chips in mobile devices are typically positioned at the top of the phone.

  • Apple wallet has a express-mode where confirmation from user is not needed to activate NFC.

Herding

The herding solution has worked well, as confirmed by our on-floor terminal staff. It was inspired by ticket gates in Japan, where adding a wall helps organize related service elements. We tested different heights to see how clear the guidance was and found one that not only made it easy to understand but also gave passengers a bit more privacy when scanning their tickets.

Drawingboard

To address this issue, we explored ways to physically separate phones from the NFC reader while maintaining a smooth passenger flow. The design concept was inspired by finger skateboards—introducing a slight ramp that redirects the phone while ensuring easy card validation.

Rabbit hole 🐇

In skateboarding, there are different types of ramps, each serving a unique purpose. A rounded ramp allows for a smooth up-and-down motion while maintaining constant contact with the surface. A triangular shape adds a jump and extends the upward movement slightly. A wave-shaped ramp creates a smooth upward flow and then transitions into a straight path forward. Since our goal was to keep the user's motion continuous without adding friction to the phone, we started by making cardboard prototypes of the wave shape.

Cardboard

Key User Feedback on the cardboard prototype was

“The NFC divider is a bit too high and obstructs my card tap.”

“The swoop in the design feels natural, but it should be slightly lower.”

“The large divider should maintain a straight edge to ensure 3D printing consistency.”

  • Version 1

    Since cardboard has its limits in being presice we moved to 3D printing. Using OnShape, we digitized the prototype while incorporating this feedback.

    The wave came directly from the drawings previously, and had the potential to be combined with the longer divider wall.

  • Version 2

    Adding the first wall and curvatures to the sides to reduce snagging when users pass through. however, the first version of the long wall is a but low.

  • Version 3

    Giving the long wall some more height and the iconic Flytoget curve because it would lessen dust buildup on the top.

    The wave design on the shorter wall, can be replaced with a triangle and a flatter edge.

  • Version 4

    Giving even more height to the longer wall. and shorter wall has a softer edge on the side to blend in with the VAB.

  • Version 5

    With a few minor adjustments to make sure it would fit onto the gates, we could start printing.

    The next phase involved 3D printing the NFC divider in PETG (FDM) for initial testing. Although this material is lightweight and suitable for pilot tests, it is not a long-term solution.

Pilot Test Setup

Five identical prototypes were deployed at Gardermoen Airport in February 2025. Testing was conducted in collaboration with:

  • Security personnel (Vektere): Monitoring passenger entry points.

  • Service coordinators (SKVer): Collecting customer interaction insights.

  • Flytoget Terminal Operations (FTV): Observing and gathering real-world data.

Test Objectives

  • Analyze customer behavior with the NFC divider.

  • Identify potential frictions in the flow.

  • Measure reduction in accidental double charges.

Next Steps

The impact of the NFC divider will be assessed by comparing complaint data from February 2025 to February 2024. Based on the results, further refinements will be made to optimize the design for long-term implementation.

Conclusion

By integrating UX research, rapid prototyping, and user feedback, this project aims to minimise accidental NFC charges while enhancing the passenger journey. The findings from this test phase will determine the feasibility of scaling the solution across more locations.

Results will be updated in march 2025