Replica Places Study

The Places Study feature in Replica transforms raw mobility data into clear, actionable insights for urban planners, policymakers, and researchers. It provides a granular view of daily life dynamics for residents, visitors, and commercial vehicles nationwide, all through a redesigned interface that makes complexity approachable.

Objective

The original Study feature was a quickly built MVP created by developers during the pandemic. It worked, but the experience was clunky, inconsistent, and lacked design vision. Users could see the potential but struggled to navigate the data or connect maps, tables, and filters in a meaningful way.

Role & Responsibilities

Led end-to-end product design from research to launch
Partnered with CEO, product managers, and engineering to define scope and priorities
Introduced design systems and UX patterns to replace ad-hoc interface decisions
Worked closely with customer success to ensure the redesign addressed real user pain points

Research and Insights

Through interviews, surveys, and support feedback, I uncovered three key barriers:

Data access was too abstract – even advanced users struggled to reach raw datasets
Filtering lacked flexibility – users wanted both tabular and geospatial controls that could scale.
The experience felt fragmented – maps, charts, and filters did not feel connected.

The Approach: Early Concepts and Sketching

I began with quick, low-fidelity sketches to explore ways of unifying maps and tables, streamlining filtering workflows, and improving the overall hierarchy of information. These sketches allowed me to quickly test different layouts, prioritize interactions, and uncover potential usability issues before investing time in detailed design.

Alongside the sketches, I developed system-level flow diagrams that mapped every step a user could take, from defining datasets to visualizing results. This provided a shared reference for design and engineering, ensuring the experience was intuitive for end users while remaining technically feasible and scalable.

Initial paper sketch exploring map/table toggling

From rough layout sketches to defining the full interaction model

The Approach: Prototyping and Iteration

Built clickable prototypes in Figma and tested them with internal teams and pilot users. Feedback loops were fast and collaborative, with weekly iterations informed by both qualitative insights and technical feasibility checks.

The Approach: Systematizing the UI

UI showing Transit Layers and Map Interactions

Key Improvements

Direct Dataset Access: One-click download of disaggregated data for deeper analysis
Scalable Filtering: Filters that worked seamlessly across both map and table views, handling multiple attributes
Integrated Geospatial Analysis: One-click download of disaggregated data for deeper analysis
Cohesive Information Architecture: Maps, charts, and filters work together in a connected layout.

Impact

3x growth in active users within 12 months
Contributed to Replica surpassing revenue targets and moving toward profitability
Became a go-to tool for urban planning, transportation, housing, and public safety initiatives

What Made This Work

The success of Places Study came from balancing system-level design thinking with practical iteration. The result was a tool powerful enough for advanced analysts yet approachable for newer users, making complex datasets easier to explore, analyze, and act on.