Škoda Group tested its passenger counting system in Tampere

On 30 March, Škoda ForCity Smart Artic Tampere tram underwent a congestion test in Tampere.

Škoda Group was involved in organising the testing together with Tampereen Raitiotie Oy, Nysse and VR, and the research partners were the University of Tampere and VTT Technical Research Centre. The congestion test is part of Tampereen Raitiotie Oy's Lyyli Living Lab project for smart urban mobility.

The tram congestion test collected data on passenger numbers, accesibility of ticketing devices and passenger experience. “Our aim was to obtain data on the accuracy of our passenger counting system and to test in practice the situations of travelling in a full vehicle. Based on the data we received, we can look for solutions together with the Tampere Tramway family operators and our partners, for example for the placement of ticketing devices and for improving the customer experience when the cars are full,” says Antti Haukaa, development engineer at Tampereen Raitiotie Oy.

The passengers in the congestion test were students from the University of Tampere and customers of NysseLab, Nysse’s test lab. The test was carried out in a Lyyli tram, which is used both in normal operation and as a test vehicle in the Lyyli Living Lab project. Škoda ForCity Smart Artic Tampere trams can accommodate a maximum of 264 passengers. Approximately 120 passengers took part in the test and the situation of overcrowding was realised by closing one of the three modules of the vehicle. Passengers took part in three test runs, each of which focused on collecting different types of data.


Nysse used the test to gather information on how to facilitate the use of the tram’s ticketing devices when the vehicle is actually overcrowded. During the test, ticketing devices were also installed on the main door of the tram to see how the addition of the device would affect the success of the ticketing process.

The accuracy of the AI-based passenger counting system was also tested in a special situation where the tram fills up with passengers very quickly.

“We have created an intelligent passenger counting system that calculates the number of passengers in each vehicle module between stops and the number of passengers onboarding and offboarding at each stop. The aim of the system is to enable the most accurate monitoring and forecasting of passenger flows. It ensures optimal use of the fleet, improves the passenger experience and minimizes costs. In the future, it will also be possible to offer services directly targeted at passengers, including information on the occupancy rate of each tram and module,” says Raine Moilanen, R&D Manager / Digital Services at Škoda Group.

To support the VTT study, both video footage from the trams and passenger experience data from surveys were collected as part of the test. The aim is to use this data to develop methods for measuring passenger experience and feeling of space.

To ensure the success of the test, it was not announced in advance.

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