Hi, I’m Noah, a designer based in Belfast, Northern Ireland.
I’m particularly interested the design of everyday things we take for granted, and how great design should go unnoticed as we go about our day. This is where my passion for my final project “Metronet” came from, as public transport is such a vital part of everyday life.
I love variety in my work, and getting to learn about lots of different people and industries through the lens of design. I really enjoy going deep into systems and concepts to be able to make the best design decisions I can.
Metronet has been an incredibly fun project to work on and has let me develop my design process greatly. I can’t wait to take what I have learnt into industry.
In Northern Ireland we like to complain. A frequent target is Translink, particularly the quality of its digital services. The Translink app, in particular, delivers a fragmented and clunky user experience for processes that should be simple and intuitive. However, this issue isn’t unique to Northern Ireland.
Across the UK, cities outside the top tier often struggle with underfunded public transport systems, and their digital services reflect this. Limited budgets and resources make it difficult to design, develop, and maintain high-quality apps. As a result, passengers are left with inconsistent, outdated, or overly complex digital tools.
This project set out to explore a broader question: how can we reduce digital inequality across transport networks that offer digital services?
Public transport has long been an area of personal interest. As someone who enjoys travelling, I’ve experienced firsthand how effective and seamless transport systems can be in other cities. While I recognise that not all physical infrastructure or scale can be replicated in a city like Belfast, digital services are different. They rely on established best practices—patterns that can be applied consistently regardless of geography or size.
Digital experience is one area where every transport system should be able to excel.
There’s also a wider, more pressing context. Public transport is increasingly central to our collective future. With growing concerns around emissions from private vehicles and the rising cost of fuel, encouraging public transport use is more important than ever. High-quality digital services play a critical role in that shift. If using public transport feels complicated or frustrating, people are less likely to adopt it.
Improving digital experiences isn’t just a design challenge—it’s part of a broader societal need.
The design process for Metronet encompassed a lot of thorough techniques. An initial desk research phase included in-depth competitor analysis, from which identified the lack of platforms designed to enable transport networks to host their services through, rather than just being a third party aggregator.
During the user research phase, I had identified through interviews the need for multi-lane user journey, affording for whether the user was using the product in the moment, or planning for later.
This lead there to be a lot of hidden logic within the system, requiring a full system map of screens to organise and maintain the user flows.
An interesting challenge with the design system was the need for component colours to be modular; so that other brands colours could fit in too. This was essential for getting networks on board with the concept. Components were designed to maintain a minimum of AA contrast accessibility with any colour.
In addition to the user facing app, a concept for the backend platform was created. “Metronet Conductor”, is the platform transport networks would use to develop, document, and maintain their data and identity within Metronet.
Metronet is a centralised platform designed to enable transport networks of any size to deliver high-quality digital services. Built around established best-practice patterns, Metronet provides users with a simple, intuitive, and cohesive experience. Within a single platform, users can plan journeys, purchase tickets, and navigate routes seamlessly.
Unlike typical off-the-shelf solutions—where networks license a product, rebrand it, and release it as their own—Metronet operates as a unified application. Users don’t need separate apps for different cities or networks. Instead, they access all supported transport systems through one consistent interface.
This approach removes the burden on individual networks to build and maintain their own apps, while offering users a smoother experience when travelling between cities or regions.
Metronet is more than a data aggregator. It is a collaborative platform that supports transport providers in managing and delivering their services. Through Metronet Conductor, networks gain access to tools that allow them to manage operations, integrate their branding, and maintain control over how their services are presented.
You can check out the full project through my Notion Blog.
