Smart tram to upgrade public transport in Pilsen

The city of Pilsen, Czechia, recently announced that it plans to set up a smart mobility centre and a living laboratory by 2027. The laboratory will be established to test different smart transportation modes in a real setting.  

Additionally, the city has signed a memorandum of cooperation with various entities for the development of Pilsen’s first smart tram. Through its development, the city aims to become Czechia’s first smart city.

Pilsen explained in a press release that Škoda Transportation will develop its first autonomous smart tram, which will have radars, sensors and cameras to monitor possible obstacles along the tracks. The tram will have space for wheelchairs, bicycles and strollers.

Kamil Mrva, Škoda Transportation Group’s Vice President for Digitization and IT, commented on the project and the potential to connect the tram to a 5G network: “By connecting our smart tram with the city’s intelligent transport system, our vision of urban transport management and development is being fulfilled. We really appreciate that we were able to participate in a project that, using new technologies, will help monitor traffic in the city and optimise it for the needs of all those who are part of it. Our means of transport will become a natural part of smart cities of the future.”

Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Pilsen Municipal Transport Companies and First Deputy Mayor Roman Zarzycký highlighted that the tram, which is expected to be completely autonomous by 2027, will have several advantages over autonomous cars. Indeed, trams travel along the same routes and therefore can consider less variables than cars. Additionally, Zarzycký clarified that transformations in the digital field will diminish human error, making transport more efficient and safer.