Moholy-Nagy University of Art and Design

Co-designing urban mobility with children

Research phases

Project documents

Project overview

Year of project

2022 - ongoing

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With the use of social design tools, this project discovers how to make urban mobility for children (age 8-13) safer and more attractive. The research uses process-based co-creational data collection, methodological tools of social design, action and observatory research, interviews to create a design prototype focusing on the specific challenges raised by the target group.

The main research question is how design might facilitate children’s physical and mental visibility and safety regarding the inclusivity of public places and mobility formats using placemaking to mitigate traffic through innovative research and co-creation-based design development process. During the methodology development and initial research phase the project applied various design research tools, such as literature and good practice review, observation and dense description, questionnaires, expert and stakeholder interviews and photo safaris, focusing on 4 preselected schools of the 8th district. To unfold the needs of the target group, several workshops were facilitated in the schools using the methodological tools of social design.

Based on the collected data, a prototype is created to tackle the specific challenges raised during the workshops. The pilot prototype is a highly adaptable, modular installation in front of the school located in Budapest downtown. The installation itself works as a research tool so assessing the usability and the impact of the tangible prototype is the last methodological part of the research. This involves different observation methods such as narrative impact assessment among the target group and quantitative tools like speed measurement using a speedometer. Concluding the findings such as community child protection, public place awareness, liminal spaces in this case-study opens the argument of transferability and paradigm changes in the context of Budapest and has potential relevance in other big cities of the CEE region as well.

Research phases

Methodology development

Jan 2022 – Jun 2022

Developing a process-based co-creational data collection and design method and involving MOME students in an R&D course.

Initial research

Jan 2022 - May 2022

During the development of the methodology and the initial research phase, the project used various design research tools, such as literature and good practice review, observation and dense description, questionnaires, interviews with experts and other stakeholders, and photo safaris, focusing on four pre-selected schools in the 8th district.

Data collection and ideation workshops

May 2022 – Jun 2022

Facilitating workshops to unfold the needs of the target group, using the methodological tools of social design.

Prototype

Jun 2022 – Mar 2023

Based on the collected data, a prototype was created focusing on tackling the specific challenges raised by the target group. The pilot prototype is a highly adaptable, modular installation in front of the K30 school located in Budapest downtown. The installation itself works as a research tool, so assessing the usability and the impact of the tangible prototype is the last methodological part of the research.

Impact assessment

Mar 2023 – ongoing

Assessing the usability and impact of the tangible prototype is the last methodological part of the research. Observational and testing workshops organized with the participation of the previously involved children.

Expanding framework

Jun 2023 – Nov 2023

As part of our cooperation with BKK we are working on a School Zone project to develop visual identification of school neighborhoods using a new design sign system.