SBB Tests ETH Spin-Off Parquery’s AI to Count Train Passengers in Real Time Using Existing Cameras
Swiss Federal Railways (SBB) is testing artificial intelligence that would measure how full its trains are in real time, watson reported on November 3, citing the Tages-Anzeiger. The technology comes from Parquery, a spin-off of ETH Zurich, and would use the security cameras already mounted in carriage ceilings to count passengers as they board.
Today the small occupancy symbols in the SBB app are based on forecasts built from past experience, the day of the week and holiday periods. They can be wrong, and travellers sometimes end up on a packed train they expected to be quiet. Parquery says live counts could reach 98% precision. Its chief executive, Andrea Fossati, told the Tages-Anzeiger that the system uses no facial recognition, no biometric measurement and no identification of individuals, that it only reads the video stream in real time and that it is separated technically and organisationally from security monitoring. Video and images of passengers are not stored, the company says.
The work is still at an early stage. Tests have turned up practical problems, such as passengers who board wearing a hat and then take it off, which the AI has to learn to handle. Parquery expects a definitive rollout in 2029 at the earliest, and SBB describes the project as a proof of concept, saying it is not yet clear when or whether the system will be used.
What it means in practice
Privacy is the sensitive point. In 2023 SBB faced strong criticism from data protection advocates over plans for cameras capable of facial recognition in large stations to study passenger flows, and it dropped the customer data element. This time it says it would involve the Federal Data Protection and Information Commissioner early if the system goes ahead. Swiss transport is testing AI on several fronts, from the first public Iamo robotaxi pilot in Furttal to rail, while Bern prepares broader rules through the AI code toolkit and sector report published ahead of the 2027 consultation.
What to watch is whether SBB moves from proof of concept to a wider trial, what the data protection commissioner says about camera-based counting, and whether more accurate occupancy figures actually spread passengers more evenly across trains.