Citizen-centered design approach to address street vendor issues within Bangkok

Project Introduction

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This project is a collaboration between the community of people interested in using design approaches to address social issues, called Thai Gov Design, and the solution that allows people to report problems occurring in Bangkok, introduced by the recently elected governor of Bangkok, Traffy Fondue.

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The volunteer!

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This voluntary collaboration, now in its third consecutive year, integrates design practices to create innovative solutions for pressing social issues. Collaborating with a public organization and the government, our primary goal is to introduce effective, human-centric solutions accessible to all individuals in Thailand. The project employs a participatory design method, actively involving stakeholders. With five volunteer groups, each focusing on specific aspects of Traffy Fondue's development goals, my group specifically dedicates efforts to elevate the solution addressing spending-related issues.

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Citizen-centered Design

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Citizen-Centered Design, is derived from User-Centered Design or Human-Centered Design, is an approach to designing products, services, or systems that prioritizes the needs, preferences, and experiences of citizens focussing on public level. Unlike common user-centered design, citizen centered design aimed to approach wide range of user among diversity of socioeconomic class, races and gender. This approach faces many challenges including government barrier, ethical concerns and complexity. Overcoming them is crucial for creating inclusive, effective, and sustainable designs that truly benefit citizens and address citizen needs.

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Thai Gov Design Community

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Thai Gov Design is a voluntary community, bringing together individuals interested in applying design thinking principles to tackle societal issues. On an annual basis, our community joins forces with government agencies in collaborative projects that span 4-6 months, aiming to address specific challenges faced by these organizations. These projects are the result of a co-creative process, where expert the facing the challenges collaborate with volunteers who offer fresh perspectives and innovative ideas. Volunteers, carefully selected from diverse backgrounds, work in groups under the guidance of designated design leads, fostering a rich exchange of ideas and insights. Beyond these annual projects, Thai Gov Design is fostering knowledge-sharing and capacity-building within the public sector. We achieve this through a range of lectures and workshops to guide the public organizations in adopting a more citizen-centered approach to address societal issues by leveraging design thinking as a tool for positive impact.

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Traffy Fondue

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Developed by National Science and Technology Development Agency, Traffy Fondue is a municipality complaint reporting and management system. Powered by artificial intelligence (AI) and linked with LINE messaging application, the city maintenance chatbot engages residents in solving city problems. The system allows residents to report city problems to and get an update on the case from city administrative offices via LINE messaging application. On the app, residents can file a report of city problems - ranging from waste to potholes, broken footpath and streetlights – and take a photo. The report along with photos and GPS locations will then be directed to concerned departments to resolve the problems. The department in charge provides an update on the case, which can be viewed by the person who files the report.Traffy Fondue offers several benefits. The city takes less time to resolve problems, resulting in cost saving and better maintenance planning and management. For residents, problems can be reported instantaneously via the mobile phone application without the need to file the complaints in person at the city hall. Traffy Fondue system has been used by 1,754 organizations, including 96 disaster prevention and mitigation offices, 577 town. The system enables a total of 78.14-million-THB cost saving.

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Thailand's Chronic Issue

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Street vendors in Thailand refer to individuals or small businesses that operate in public spaces, typically along sidewalks, streets, or open markets, selling a variety of goods and services. Thailand is renowned for its vibrant street food culture, where street vendors play a significant role in providing diverse and flavorful local dishes to both locals and tourists. Street vendors are an integral part of Thai culture, contributing to the vibrant and dynamic atmosphere of markets and busy urban areas.

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Research

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I created a research board to foster a collaborative environment where all members could actively contribute to the exploration of information related to street vendor issues. Our research approach involved conducting an extensive literature review, delving into a diverse range of sources such as journals, publications, and theses from various institution both academic and professional. This examination aimed to comprehensively understand the multifaceted dimensions of the street vendor issue within Thailand.

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Findings

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Why this issue is chronic

While street vendors significantly contribute to the local experience and culinary richness, the regulation of street vending has become a topic of discussion in urban planning and governance. This issue involves balancing economical issues with considerations for public space and hygiene. The government cannot eliminate them, as doing so may result in numerous job losses. Moreover, street vendors are key service providers for middle to lower-income citizens. This predicament poses a challenge in determining how best to address this issue.

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Conceptual Framework

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PESTEL Analysis - Understand the factor that affect the futures

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To comprehensively address the street vendor issue, particularly in light of the recent Bangkok Governor election, this matter has garnered attention, leading to the proposal of new policies. We conducted a PESTEL analysis to anticipate and understand the potential impacts and changes that may unfold in the future. This strategic assessment allows us to delve into multiple aspects surrounding street vending, providing a holistic perspective to inform our approach.

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User Research

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The street vendor is a complex issue, involving numbers of stakeholders, each of them have their own intentions and perceptions toward the matter. In our quest to design a comprehensive solution, my team embarked on an in-depth research journey, aiming to unravel the intricacies of these diverse stakeholders and their perspectives on the issue. This effort is crucial to inform our design process and ensure that the proposed solution resonates with the varied needs and concerns of all involved parties.

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Methods

Media Review

Autoethnography

Surveys

Contextual Interview

Subject-matter interview

Field Observation

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Sample Size

Common People N=10 participants

Subject-matter Interview N=5 participants

Street vendors with permitted N=5 participants

Street vendors no permits N=5 participants

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User Group

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Survey Questionnaire

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Our research initiative was robust, involving a survey with a substantial sample size of 500 individuals. The primary objective was to delve into the intricate factors that contribute to public perceptions of street vendors. Employing a diverse set of questionnaire types, including open-ended queries, Likert scales, semantic differentials, and Kano questionnaires, enabled us to capture a comprehensive range of insights and opinions from the respondents.

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We allocated a dedicated section in our survey to comprehensively understand all of the factors contributing to the street vendor issue in different areas including residential, workplace and public areas. We cross validated with time and size of the foot path to understand how each factor co-related each other.

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ERAF Diagram + Stakeholder Mapping

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After gathering information, I created a framework to illustrate how various factors are interconnected and contribute to the negative perception of the street vendor issue. This conceptual framework not only helps in understanding the issue thoroughly but also guides user research. By identifying key elements such as regulations and the roles of stakeholders like site owners, government workers, and sellers, the framework influences the direction and focus of user research, ensuring a more targeted and insightful exploration of people's attitudes and behaviors toward street vendors.

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Understand Citizens

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Our investigation revealed that officers receive numerous reports, particularly related to street vendor issues. We delved into the process of handling reports from Traffy Fondue and discovered that it imposes a considerable cognitive load on officers. Users are required to assign responsibility to the incidents during reporting, and this often proves challenging as they lack awareness of the correct organization to designate. Additionally, we identified that many existing policies are not effectively implemented in practice, leaving officers with limited options for resolution. Currently, Thailand lacks regulations that effectively address these issues. Consequently, many sellers opt to pay fines and continue selling, contributing to a perpetuating cycle of the problem.

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Journey map - How citizen reports

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Understand Street Vendors

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We discovered that the majority of street vendors are aware that selling outside the designated spots is illegal. However, the challenges arise from the inconsistency in the policies regarding street vendor selling spots, which have been subject to frequent changes over the past eight years due to political instability, government transitions, and military coups. Limited access to information and resources compounds the issue for sellers, as they often have to physically visit district offices to check for updates. This process entails a significant interruption to their businesses, leading to a loss of income for an entire day. Moreover, the restricted number of permitted spots forces vendors to allocate these spaces amongst themselves, adding an extra layer of complexity and competition within the street vending community.

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Journey Map - How seller request permit

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Understand Officer

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Swimlane Diagram - How office currently address the reports

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Insight Summary

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Disorganizing of the street vendors

Insights

The street vendors operate in an opt for convenience, which leads to issues such as disorganization and blocked the footpaths. This approach makes it easier for them on the other hand it results in recurring disturbance to people, posing challenges for the officers tasked with addressing these problems repeatedly.

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Needs

The street vendors require easy guidance on how to conduct their businesses legally and responsibly to avoid causing disruptions. Officers can play a crucial role by translating policies into easily understandable materials for the street vendors, enabling them to operate without disturbing others.

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Limited resources for everyone’s benefits

Insights

Fake reports often happen when street vendors compete with each other. This occurrence stems from the limited resources, leading to intense competition as they strive to make a living.

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Needs

The government holds the key to establishing a fair and effective system for supervising street vendors. With the comprehensive and transparent governances, the authorities can create a level playing field for all street vendors, fostering a place where everyone can have an equal opportunity.

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Conflict among stakeholder

Insights

Many people sympathize with the challenges faced by the street vendors, but issues persist. Officers find themselves in compromising situations, and also the instances of corruption among some officers exacerbate the problem.

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Needs

Each stakeholder requires a tailored solution to address their specific needs. Empathy and understanding are crucial for finding comprehensive solutions that accommodate the diverse perspectives of all stakeholders.

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Difficult information accessing

Insights

Many problems arise from a lack of accessible information for street vendors. The relevant information is challenging to access and comprehend, creating difficulties for the street vendors. Additionally, obtaining the information often involves physical visits, resulting in income and profit loss for the vendors.

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Needs

Street vendors face difficulties due to a lack of accessible information. The existing sources often require physical visits, leading to income losses. Providing comprehensive, easily accessible information can increase awareness and promote responsible business practices.

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Design Challenges

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Our Approach

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The current approach of Traffy Fondue is focused on eliminating and solving individual incidents, but the problem persists due to the underlying root causes remaining unresolved.Our approach is to create the interventions that address the root of the problem, assisting street vendors in various aspects to prevent disturbances to the public. This, in turn, can lead to a reduction in reported incidents on Traffy Fondue.

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Design Principle

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To navigate through these complexities, we applied a strategic approach by formulating "design principles." These principles served as guiding frameworks to ideate a more comprehensive and cohesive system for tackling the problem. This method facilitated the transition from insights gained through user research to the exploration of conceptual ideas. It played a pivotal role in building alignment within the team, transforming descriptive insights into actionable statements.

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Radical Transparency

The new system design must provide updated and accurate information along with actions that can be monitored in the future.

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Easy-accessed Information

The new system design must offer easy-to-understand together with the accessible features for the stakeholders of all educational backgrounds and abilities.

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Collaborating Responsibly

The new system must foster all the stakeholder to support each other to do their action responsibly.

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Well-utilized limited resources

The new system must fairly allocate the resources to ensure the equitable opportunities for everyone to make a living.

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Design

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Service Artifacts

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Credential Signage

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The Bangkok Administration will issue credential signage to street vendors with a legal permit to sell. The signage will include a QR code for people to scan and verify their credentials. This initiative can be promoted through social media with the hashtag #support-the-one-with-credential to encourage vendors to apply for permits.

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Chat-based Application

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In this system, we incorporate two chat-based applications, Traffy Street Shop and Traffy Fondue, designed to address street vendor issues. These applications are seamlessly delivered through LINE Application, the widely popular messaging app in Thailand. Utilizing LINE's messaging API, we enhance user interactions with real-time conversations, ensuring a user-friendly experience. This approach eliminates the need for additional app installations, accommodating street vendors with limited device storage. The API facilitates convenient and accessible communication, allowing users to access information and report incidents effortlessly.

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Traffy Street Shop

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Traffy Street Shop is a service designed to assist street vendors in operating their businesses legally. This innovative platform enables street vendors to access public services digitally, eliminating the need for visits to the district office. Additionally, Traffy Street Shop facilitates seamless digital communication between public officers and street vendors. The platform assists vendors in digital registration, collecting valuable data for further analytics. The accumulated data empowers the government to analyze and interpret trends, leading to the formulation of more effective policies to address this issue in the future.

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User with permitted login flow

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Request for permit flow

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Adding business’s information

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Helper bot flow

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Payment flow

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Vendors Profile

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Fixing reported problem flow

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Optimized Traffy Fondue

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My team played enhanced the user experience (UX) of Traffy Fondue to make it more accessible and user-friendly in addressing street vendor issues. We focused on improving the interface to ensure ease of use for both the general public and street vendors. Our efforts included refining the navigation, simplifying the reporting process, and optimizing the overall design to provide a seamless and intuitive experience. By implementing these improvements, we aimed to encourage more effective reporting and communication, contributing to the success of Traffy Fondue in addressing street vendor-related challenges in Bangkok.

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Report Flow

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Follow-up flow

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UX Improvement Details

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We simplified the rich menu by eliminating unused menu, retaining only essential menu actions

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We found out that the process bar is misleading for the conversation-based interaction. We turn to use the badge to state clearer status.

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We simplified the category listing by eliminating unused options and add the dedicated category for street vendors

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Usability Testing

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During the task-based testing, participants were assigned specific scenarios and tasks that mimicked real-world interactions with the system. This approach helped us evaluate how well users could perform essential actions and achieve their objectives within the design. The feedback and observations gathered during these tests played a crucial role in refining the user interface to enhance overall usability.We found out that participant who under 30 years old feel it easy to use. For the vendors, they said that if it too complicated, they will ask there children to finish for them.

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Service Blueprints

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Impacts

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Present the idea to key stakeholders

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We presented the design research and proposed solutions to key stakeholders, including the Traffy Fondue Team and other relevant organizations. The aim was to gather feedbacks and ensure alignment with their goals, and incorporate any valuable insights or suggestions according to the final design.

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Support Bangkok Hackathon 2023

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We were tasked with supporting and facilitating the presentation of the user research results to the participants of the 2023 Bangkok Hackathon. Our role involved providing insights, guiding discussions, and assisting in the exploration of potential solutions during the event.

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Collaborate with BKKSpokesman team

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We worked in collaboration with Bangkok's spokesman team to help formulate the public hearing for recent policies regarding street vendors. Our goal was to contribute to the development and communication of policies that involve and impact street vendors in the city.

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Team Member

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Paul P.

Citizen-centered design approach to address street vendor issues within Bangkok

Year

2023

Role

Service Design Lead

Design at

Thai Gov Design

For

Traffy Fondue - Bangkok Governor Office

Project Overview

Project Deepdive

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