Sekere Ride is a Nigerian inter-city ride-sharing mobile app that connects private car owners with passengers traveling between the same cities. Unlike traditional ride-hailing platforms, Sekere Ride enables direct fare negotiation, flexible pickup points, and escrow-protected payments, making long-distance travel more affordable and safer for everyday users.

The product targets students, young professionals, and frequent inter-city travelers who need reliable transport without the cost or rigidity of buses and charters.

Inter-city travel in Nigeria presents three major challenges:

Affordability Existing transport options are either overcrowded and unsafe (buses) or expensive and inflexible (charter services).

Lack of Trust Passengers often have little information about drivers, vehicles, or routes, leading to fear, cancellations, and unsafe trips.

Poor Payment Experience Cash payments increase fraud and disputes, while fixed-fare apps don’t account for route variations, fuel costs, or shared trips.

Design a mobile experience that:

Makes inter-city rides affordable and flexible

Builds trust and safety between drivers and passengers

Supports multiple Nigerian payment methods

Works reliably in low-connectivity environments

I was responsible for:

Product discovery & UX strategy

User flows and interaction design

High-fidelity UI design (mobile + admin)

Design system and component library

Payment and safety-critical flows

I focused on clarity, reassurance, and control.

Transparency first: Show who you’re riding with, where you’re going, and what you’re paying.

Guided freedom: Allow negotiation, but structure it to reduce abuse.

Mobile-first simplicity: Design for quick decisions and low bandwidth.

Local relevance: Language, currency, and payment options tailored to Nigeria.

I created a lightweight design system:

Rounded, friendly UI components

Green primary color for trust and success

Clear typography hierarchy

Reusable components for payments, cards, and tables

This reduced design debt and improved developer handoff.

Passenger onboarding & verification

Ride search, negotiation, and booking

Live trip tracking & SOS

Ratings and dispute resolution

Admin moderation & payout dashboard

I conducted early research through:

Informal interviews with frequent inter-city travelers

Reviews of existing transport apps

Analysis of safety incidents and payment disputes

80% of users felt anxious about ride safety and driver credibility

65% wanted real-time tracking and trip sharing with family

47% said early setup was the biggest challenge

Trust increased significantly when driver identity and vehicle info were visible upfront

These insights directly informed safety, payment, and verification features.

Passengers: Students, young professionals, and SMEs traveling between cities

Drivers: Private car owners looking to offset travel costs

Admins: Operations and support teams managing safety, payments, and disputes

Balancing freedom vs safety in fare negotiation

Designing for low trust and high anxiety

Supporting cash-heavy but digital-transitioning users

Creating flows that work even with unstable internet

Escrow-protected payments

Strong verification and visible trust signals

Clear, simple copy with local tone

Offline-friendly layouts and reduced complexity

After usability testing and pilot feedback:

Reduced payment disputes due to escrow and clear breakdowns

Higher ride completion rate from improved trust signals

Increased user confidence, especially among first-time riders

Admin teams could resolve incidents faster with better visibility