Welcome to the Transit Map Study
You will be shown a subway map and given three different tasks to find your way around the subway network. Each of the three tasks will begin with practice trials. The tasks are outlined below. When the study is completed, the results of the study will be available at www.cs.kent.ac.uk/people/rpg/pbl2/colorcoding.html.
Once you start this HIT, you must go all the way through to the end and click Submit HIT, otherwise you cannot be paid. You must not stop and restart the HIT. Do not use your browser's Back button, and do not switch browsers. Permitted browsers: Firefox, Chrome, and Safari.
Please note: You must expand your browser window to see the full length of the map frame (750 pixels long).
Task 1
Can you get from one station to another without changing trains? Click Yes or No.
Task 2
Plan a journey between two stations. If you need to make one or more transfers between lines, click on the names of the transfer stations.
Task 3
Plan a journey between from a region to a station. Click on the start station. If you need to make one or more transfers between lines, click on the names of the transfer stations.
When you are ready to go the next step, click the "Go" button.
This study is run by the School of Computing in the University of Kent at Canterbury, England. The map we are using is a diagram of the routes of the New York subway system, used with permission of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), using colour schemes of the MTA and of Kick Design Inc.
Task 1 Instructions: Route Tracing
Routes and stations
- Each colored line represents one subway route.
- A black dot shows that a given route stops at a given station. Sometimes a route runs through a station without stopping.
- Two or more dots side-by-side mean that you can transfer from one route to another at that station.
Example
Look at the orange, red, and light blue bundle of routes:
- At 72 St, the orange, red, and light blue routes all stop.
- At 66 St, only the orange route stops.
- At 59 St, on this bundle, only the orange route stops, but there are also four stops on another bundle of routes (dark blue, green, purple, and another orange route), so you can transfer between any of those routes there.
Look at the red bundle of routes:
- At 72 St, the three red routes all stop.
- At 66 St, only the leftmost route stops.
- At 59 St, on this bundle, only the leftmost red route stops, but there are also four stops on the next bundle of routes (two blue, two orange), so you can transfer between any of those routes there.
Look at the red bundle of routes:
- At 72 St, the three red routes all stop.
- At 66 St, only the leftmost route stops.
- At 59 St, on this bundle, only the leftmost red route stops, but there are also four stops on the next bundle of routes (two blue, two orange), so you can transfer between any of those routes there.
Station names
Stations can have the same name even when they are far apart. You should pay attention only to the highlighted target stations.
Zoom
To zoom in and out of the map, you can click the "+" and "-" signs that are
just below the the title. To return to the default level of zoom, click the word "Reset".
If you are using a mouse, you can also use the thumbwheel of your mouse to zoom in and out.
Pan
To pan the map, click and drag. (But take care not to click on a station name!)
Clock
The time that is left for each trial is shown in the top right-hand corner. When the time runs out, you will be moved on to the next trial.
How to do the route-tracing trials
For each trial, the start and end stations are highlighted in blue and red, respectively. If you think you can travel from start to end without changing trains, click yes, otherwise no. Then click Finish.
Ready to go!
Task 2 Instructions: Journey Planning from a Specified Station
You have to plan a journey between the start and end stations. Click on the names of any stations where you need to transfer from one route to another. In the example below, click on 96th St to show you are transferring there. Sometimes you need to transfer even when the routes have the same color.
When you click on a station name, it will be highlighted in orange, and its name will appear above the map. If you make a mistake, you can delete it by clicking "Delete".
Ready to go!
Task 3 Instructions: Journey Planning from a Specified Area
This is like the previous task, but you now have to make your own choice of starting station within the given region.
Click on the name of your chosen starting station, and then click on the names of any stations where you need to transfer.
Ready to go!
Click below when you are ready to begin.
You have been timed out on this trial!
Click below to proceed.
Correct!
Click below to proceed.
You have completed this trial
Click below to proceed.
Incorrect!
Click below to proceed.
Incorrect!
Click below to proceed.
First training done!
Well done, you have completed the training for the first task. You are now ready to commence the
actual route-tracing trials.
Click below to proceed.
First task done!
Great, you have completed the first task. You are now read to commence the
practice trials for the second task, which comprises journey planning.
Click below to proceed.
Second training done!
Well done, you have completed the training for the second task. You are now ready to commence the
actual journey-planning trials.
Click below to proceed.
Well done, you have completed the second task!
Click below to proceed to the third task.
You have completed all of your tasks!
Thanks for taking part! Your contribution to this research is much appreciated!