Stay Home
The aim of this project was to create two design outcome that explore the idea of ‘Crowd.’
Using the City of Melbourne Pedestrian Counting System data, I created an infographic and video showing how Covid-19 has impacted crowds in the Melbourne CBD.
Throughout my research into how others have used the PCS data, I was captivated by the shapes the data made. The expansion and contraction and the rise and fall of the graphs so closely mimicked the fluidity of a crowd.
Using 8 CBD locations that had significance to me, I collated data in weekly totals from the first week of January, 2019, through to the last week of July, 2021. I explored this movement through the use of line graphs.
By rounding off the sharp edges and adding some blended lines, I was able to create flowing, wave-like lines, that showed the movement and fluctuation of Melbourne crowds as restrictions and lockdowns were introduced and eased, then re-introduced and eased.
This was then animated in Adobe After Effects. The addition of sound creates an immersive experience that will resonate with many.
The video can be viewed here.
My second design outcome explored representing this data in a more traditional infographic. Utilising an area graph gave a similar wave-like movement that I’d tried to capture in my video. This data covers the same 8 locations as the video, though the data extends through to the last week of September.
Each data point shows the total number of pedestrians for the week, as well as any significant pandemic events that may have impacted on pedestrian traffic levels.