© dpa
As of today, passengers travelling on the Berlin S-Bahn can see how much space is left in each carriage at six stations before the train arrives.
The new system called ‘Lightgate’ measures in real time how full the S-Bahn carriages are and displays this on the information monitors on the platform, Deutsche Bahn announced. Green stands for plenty of space, yellow for medium capacity and red for little space in the carriage.
The new capacity utilisation display is a pilot project. It was initially installed for trains travelling from both directions at Alexanderplatz, Hackescher Markt, Friedrichstraße and Hermannstraße stations and for westbound trains at Bellevue and Hauptbahnhof stations.
The sensors for ‘Lightgate’ are a type of light barrier in the track area that detect passing trains. Depending on the number of people in the S-Bahn, the light beam is interrupted more frequently or less frequently. ‘This results in a measured value with over 90 per cent accuracy,’ the railway announced. For the pilot test, ten sensors were installed between Jannowitzbrücke and the main railway station and between Tempelhof and Neukölln.
The measurement system also provides the federally owned company with new data on train capacity utilisation at certain times. This could improve the planning of future services or replacement bus services, for example. The pilot project, which is scheduled to run for several years, will cost around 900,000 euros. It is being financed by Deutsche Bahn and the states of Berlin and Brandenburg.