How Video Analytics Helps Evaluating and Implementing New Public Transport Pricing Models

Introduction of the 9-Euro-Ticket

In summer of 2022, traveling by train throughout Germany was cheaper than ever: the so-called 9-Euro-Ticket made it affordable for everyone to travel through Germany by regional trains for just 9 Euro per month. This special offer was a part of the energy relief package due to increased costs for electricity, heating and groceries.

As with any political decision, opinions about the ticket vary. Some see it as an opportunity for affordable and more sustainable means of traffic, others fear that with a flat-price structure the transport infrastructure reaches it limits.

In this article we evaluate how video analytics helps to introduce new public transport pricing models.

Successes of the Ticket

Sales figures show: The 9-Euro-Ticket was a box-office hit. The ticket was bought an incredible 52 million times in the three months that it was valid and there were 44% more train journeys than in the previous months of 2019. 17% of the 9-Euro-Ticket users changed completely from other types of transport to public transport in August.

Because of the big success of the ticket, the federal government of Germany discussed the continuation of a low cost universal valid ticket. For the right decision of course, correct and precise data is necessary.

Infrastructure faces its limits

Martin Burkert, Vice President of the Railway and Transport Union, reported that employees were working close to maximum capacity. The situation in trains and stations was mostly tense, the larger crowds causing delays of departing trains. Another reason for the delays was the increase of weight of the trains caused by the increase in passenger numbers. Safety regulations forced drivers to go at lower speeds due to the higher weight onboard. Statistics show that the delays in regional traffic during the time were around 12%.

The infrastructure of the trains and stations has also suffered due to the increased usage during the time in which the ticket was in place. Elevators were broken and toilets in trains were out of order.

All of this goes to show that transportation companies are likely to face considerable challenges in the eventuality of a sudden change in pricing.

Video analytics as a decision assistant

The use of video analytics is essential to analyze usage figures, because with video analytics the exact number of passengers in stations and inside trains can be determined.

With the flat 9-Euro-Ticket, sales figures can no longer be used to determine the infrastructure usage. A video analytics system can pinpoint traffic on trains by counting passengers entering and exiting the train and at stations by using different heat maps. In another article on crowd-counting we demonstrate how occupancy can be easily visualized with heat maps.

The high accuracy of video analytics provides a solid data foundation for critical decisions such as a change in price structure.

Benefits of Video Analytics

Benefits for Infrastructure Planning

Isarsoft Perception makes it easier to plan the reconstruction of an infrastructure in advance. Because of the high accuracy of the collected data, future constructions can be planned more precisely. Obstacles and general problems like missing elevators, seating or signs are recognized through video analytics and so solutions can be found.

Problems like missing orientation of passengers get visible through different visualizations of passenger flow such as dwell time maps, path maps and velocity maps.

Benefits for Security and Safety

On-site security is increased by the fact that the security staff is informed by previously set alarms and can then intervene in what is happening more quickly. Read our Article how alarms can be set. It significantly increases the level of security without additional staff. This is possible by real-time data collection, which makes it easy to intervene fast in situations that are important for security. The detection of problematic situations works through integration with security management systems. The current data is compared with the data which is already collected and irregularities are reported in real-time.

The video streams are analyzed in real-time and no bio-metric information is collected. Isarsoft Perception is GDPR compliant through features such as automatic anonymization.

Efficiency Gains

Crowds of people can be prevented by the passenger flow survey made by Isarsoft Perception and associated optimization. Crowds that emerge surprisingly are detected by previously set alarms. The ability to predict overcrowding is greatly increased by increasing staff capacity in advance when actually needed. Due video analytics time tables can be adjusted with higher reliability, because Isarsoft Perception is able to recognize micro and macro trends.

This improves the punctuality and consequently the satisfaction of customers.

More about Isarsoft

With Isarsoft Perception, your camera systems become part of your business intelligence. Whether the goal is to increase efficiency, customer satisfaction or safety, Isarsoft Perception provides the insights needed for informed decisions.

Contact us, to learn more about how to turn security cameras into intelligent sensors.

Further References:

9€ ticket sold 52 million times

Results of a successful model: the 9€ ticket