Because the infrastructure has reached its capacity limits in many places, the steadily growing number of rail passengers is becoming an ever greater challenge for the operational quality of commuter trains. Particularly at peak times, when the tight train schedule leaves only a limited time for boarding and disembarking, the high number of passengers at the platforms leads to delays in train dispatching. The aim of Stuttgarter S-Bahn’s project „Leuchtende Bahnsteigkante“ is to shorten train stoppage times by improving boarding behaviour at the platform.
To this end, an illuminated concrete strip with embedded optical fibres was installed on the platform. It shows passengers the best place for them to wait for the train. Before an S-Bahn train enters the station, illuminated patterns are displayed along the entire length of the platform showing where the train will stop, how long the train is, and where its door areas are. Combined with a measurement of the current train load using data protection-compliant picture evaluation, the space occupancy is indicated with different colours in real-time, on model trains.