Germany

Expert Workshop «The Public Transport of Tomorrow: Sustainable and Innovative Mobility Concepts and their Consequences for the World of Work in the Public Transport Sector

04 May 2022

On May 04, the expert workshop below the topic «The public transport of tomorrow» took place at the TU Kaiserslautern.

The field test with automated cross-border shuttles as well as the accompanying research on the topic of Mobility on Demand have enabled the project to gather numerous findings. The htw saar and the Institute for Mobility & Transport at the Technical University of Kaiserlautern were able to present and jointly discuss these findings in a workshop with an expert audience consisting of public transport authorities, mobility providers and transport authorities.

As part of an interactive task, the opportunities and risks of the use of autonomous vehicles in public transport were debated. In addition, conclusive mobility concepts in the area of mobility on demand were discussed. Based on the visions developed, there was ultimately a lively exchange about the change in qualification profiles in the mobility industry up to the year 2040.

The workshop provided the project with insightful findings that are essential for the further course of the project.

We thank all experts for their participation!

Workshop with the accompanying drivers to evaluate the practical test phase

23rd November 2021

To round off the evaluation of the test field, the htw saar invited the drivers and the management of the KVS GmbH to a workshop.

During this event, the results of the trip logs regarding the use of the automated shuttle as well as special incidents and challenges with the automated system were discussed. In addition, all six drivers of the strategic partner had the opportunity to talk about their personal experiences and emotions as «driving operators».

All of the drivers volunteered to take part in the test. Main motivations for their participation were curiosity, technical interest and the opportunuty of driving a Tesla. It was an experience they would not want to miss.

The drivers are aware that mobility is changing and therefore want to participate in innovative developments to get an insight into what the future of a bus driver could look like.

A quote from one bus driver:

«Depending on what the future brings…But all in all, autonomous driving will come to us all in the distant future and that’s why we are getting to know it directly, best from the beginning!»

The field trial is also viewed positively by the management. Mr Michel, Managing Director of KVS GmbH saw the special opportunity to sensitise his specialised staff to the topic and assessed the free «loan» of bus drivers as a useful investment in the future:

«The world goes on and you have to prepare for it. While I could provide my staff with educational material and videos, there is nothing better than experimenting with automated driving yourself. And I also expect a multiplier effect in my own house.»

The Operations Manager, Dirk Joris adds that the experience gained has been so positive that involvement in future projects would be absolutely conceivable.

As the lead partner, the htw saar would like to take this opportunity to thank you the KVS GmbH on behalf of the entire consortium for their great support.

Automated and safe – Terminal research project invited for a test ride

Überherrn, September 4th 2021

The open day of the TERMINAL project in Überherrn took place in the best weather on 4 September 2021.
The event, organised by the htw saar and the Saarland Ministry of Economic Affairs, Labour, Energy and Transport, was an opportunity for citizens to get to know the TERMINAL project with its practical field test. At the same time, the project team was able to sensitise those interested to innovative transport solutions.

All citizens had the opportunity to take a ride in a Tesla Model X with activated Autopilot and thus get their own idea of an automated shuttle service. More than 30 people took advantage of this offer: They drove off silently and full of excitement and returned happy after a ten-minute drive. In particular, the high level of comfort and the quiet ride were perceived as a big plus compared to conventional public transport. The passengers were also able to determine where the limits of automation lie. Nevertheless, they would also recommend automated driving to friends, family and colleagues, as they stated in the survey.

[ngg src=»galleries» ids=»12″ display=»basic_thumbnail» thumbnail_crop=»0″] Photos: htw saar

The supporters of the project were also among the passengers : The mayor of Überherrn, Mrs. Yliniva-Hoffmann and the head of the village, Mr. Zenner, as well as Mr. Dastillung, president of the municipal association Warndt (France) and his staff were able to take part in a test ride and afterwards talk to the project managers and discussed with the local bus operator (Mr. Michel, managing director of KVS GmbH) about how the the future public transport service may look like.

In the early afternoon, the Saarland Minister of Transport, Anke Rehlinger, paid a visit to the project stand. In addition to a test drive with one of the people responsible for the project, Prof. Dr. Horst Wieker (head of the research group for transport telematics, htw saar), the minister was able to get first-hand feedback from the commuters: Giovanna Stambene has been driving since the start of the operational test and is enthusiastic: «I live in France and work in Häsfeld and I think it’s really great that such a cross-border offer is coming about.» When asked by the minister if she has ever experienced a critical situation in which she felt unsafe, Giovanna replies, «Not at all, an accident can happen to me with my own car. Here, the drivers are still there for safety and I arrive at work totally relaxed!»

Another convinced test person, Christian Paulus, who had brought his family with him, also told the project team that he regretted that the practical phase was already coming to an end in three weeks. He will miss the shuttle service. A statement that prompted the minister to leave the stand with a positive view of the future: » I am glad that we have now reached the practical phase of the project and can show a nice demonstrator of automated driving in Saarland.»

Many thanks to the municipality of Überherrn for its support during the organisation of the event!

Open Day

Überherrn, 4th September 2021

Inform – Play – Win

Next Saturday, the TERMINAL project invites you to an open day.

From 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., project staff will be available to provide information to interested parties and answer any questions.

The aim of this event is to introduce the crossborder automated shuttle service to the local population and to give them the opportunity to experience autom ated driving for themselves in a test ride.

Just come along!

Practical test of the cross-border automated shuttle service launched!

July 12th 2021

The first cross-border commuters test the free automated shuttle service between Creutzwald and Überherrn.

The long-awaited start signal has been given and the automated shuttle service is up and running! «Professor Bousonville of the htw saar is delighted and very proud after two years of work on the TERMINAL project. His colleague, Professor Wieker, adds: «This is an important step for cross-border traffic.

After initially investigating the framework conditions for automated transport in the border region, testing the reactions of the vehicles on the route in a dry run phase and intensively training the accompanying drivers (provided by KVS GmbH), the time has come for practical testing: the cross-border automated electric shuttle service is to be tested under real traffic conditions during a three-month trial period,

Two TESLA Model Xs will be used to cover the long distance (17 km) between Creutzwald and the «Im Häsfeld» industrial estate in Überherrn-Altforweiler. The shuttle service offers registered commuters the unique opportunity to try out this innovative mobility concept free of charge. From Monday to Friday between July and September, the vehicles will take commuters from France to their workplace (morning, office, afternoon or night).

The first trip starts shortly after 5 a.m. and the last one ends shortly before midnight. The shuttle service is designed to fully meet the needs of commuters. On some days, the shuttle will run only a few times, while on others it will serve all workplaces.

Although the vehicles can accommodate up to five passengers, the project’s sanitation plan stipulates that a maximum of two passengers can use the shuttle service simultaneously.

Throughout the experimental phase, technical data from the vehicle will be collected to indicate when and in what situations the vehicle is running in autopilot mode and when, on the contrary, it is necessary for accompanying drivers to take over control of the vehicle.

Passenger experiences and driving sensation will also be collected in the form of surveys and their analysis will provide important insights into the acceptance and limitations of such a mobility concept.

After the test phase with cross-border commuters, it is planned to make the mobility service available to the general public. The exact timetable and registration options will be announced in due course.

Terminal is the first project to investigate a cross-border automated mobility concept. The project is financed by the «Interreg VA Grande Région» programme, the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and the Saarland Ministry of Economics, Labour, Energy and Transport. The Saarland University of Applied Sciences (htw saar) is the project leader.

Charging stations put into operation at KVS !

Saarlouis, July 1st 2021

The time has come! Just in time for the start of the practical test phase, two brand new 22kW charging wallboxes were put into operation at our partner – KVS GmbH from Saarlouis.

These enable rapid charging of both test vehicles, which will transport every day cross-border commuters who have registered to use the shuttle service between Creutzwald and the Häsfeld industrial estate from 8 July.

This guarantees that the vehicles, which will be partly on the road from early in the morning (4.30 a.m.) until late in the evening (midnight), will always be ready for operation for each work shift!

First citizen dialogue: INFORM on June 16th 2021

The practical test will take place very soon and we are delighted to invite you to our first information event.

WHEN? June 16th, 2021 at 6pm

WHERE? Zoom Video conference

We will inform you about the objectives of the project, present you the planned test drives and the used automated vehicles and answer your questions.

Languages : French and German with simultaneous translation

Presentation of the project in Überherrn

March 25th 2021

One week after Creutzwald, it was now the turn of the German municipality of Überherrn.

The representatives of the TERMINAL project, Professor Wieker, Niclas Wolniak and Isabelle Rösler presented the progress of the project to the Überherrn municipal council and outlined the details of the upcoming practical test phase.

Many thanks to the municipality of Überherrn and especially to the mayor Mrs Yliniva-Hoffmann for this opportunity!

Successful second monitoring committee for TERMINAL

February 23rd 2021

Corona obliges, this year’s Monitoring Committee took place online, but it was no less successful!

Despite the current difficult situation, the TERMINAL project has managed to make substantial progress in 2020, and the INTERREG project manager, Mrs Arnould, was very pleased to congratulate the consortium.

With the acquisition of two test vehicles, an important project milestone has been reached and preparations for the operational phase are in full swing.

We will keep you informed!

Successful first monitoring committee for TERMINAL

Saarbrücken

12th February 2020

On the morning of 12 February 2020, the first Monitoring Committee of the TERMINAL project took place at the htw saar forum. This event was the opportunity to present the progress of the project to our funding authority INTERREG as well as to our strategic partners.
We would like to thank all our operational and strategic partners for their cooperation and look forward to the next two years with great anticipation and enthusiasm!