Rhine-Alpine News
12.02.2025
Switzerland greenlights autonomous driving starting March 2025
Symbolic picture by Luca Bravo on Unsplash
Swiss authorities have greenlit autonomous vehicles on Swiss roads from March 2025, following years of controlled trials. These vehicles can autonomously steer, control speed and braking, but drivers must be ready to retake control if needed. Cantons will have the authority to approve certain routes for automated vehicles, typically buses, taxis, or delivery vans. Automated parking will be permitted at designated car parks and parking zones.
The Swiss government has been handing out permits for driverless vehicle tests under strict safety conditions since 2015, and a revision of the Road Traffic Act in 2023. Switzerland’s 26 cantons will now coordinate automated transport systems alongside regular vehicle traffic. The next phase of automated transport will involve more advanced pilot projects with real automated vehicles to gain experience in topography, streets, signage, and traffic flows. The focus is on ride-sharing vehicles that onboard as many passengers as possible, rather than ride-hailing taxis.
It is expected that by 2030, around 100 Level 4 autonomous vehicles on Swiss public roads will be in operation. However, there is still much to learn about the impact of such technology on roads before car manufacturers are willing to invest in autonomous cars.
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Inland Waterway Transport Projects Cooperation platform launched
Symbolic picture by Jerzy Gorecki on Pixabay
The Inland Waterway Transport Projects Cooperation (IWT) platform, launched at the ‘Waterborne Days’ in Brussels, offers a comprehensive overview of EU-funded projects in research, innovation, and demonstration in inland waterway transport.
The platform brings together 37 complementary projects, aiming to create an environment for project coordinators and consortia to exchange knowledge and align their goals. It addresses industry needs such as zero-emission technologies, digitalisation, climate-resilient infrastructure, logistics, and workforce quality. It also aims to enable stakeholders to overcome market barriers, support research, and jointly make recommendations for policy action. The platform also plans to organize joint events.
As a hub for European research, development and innovation projects, the platform is designed to provide information about ongoing projects and highlights the added value of cooperation, as it can set the course for a resilient, competitive, and sustainable future.
Source(in German):
Deutsche Bahn signs volume contract for digital control and security technology
Symbolic picture by Adi Goldstein on Unsplash
Deutsche Bahn has signed its first long-term volume contract with four rail industry companies for digital control and security technology.
The contract, worth €6.3 billion, covers digital signalling technology, including the European Train Control System (ETCS) and integrated control and operating systems. The four business partners are MerMec Deutschland GmbH, Hitachi Rail GTS Deutschland GmbH, Alstom, and Siemens Mobility in a bidding consortium with Leonhard Weiss. DB is obliged to call up 15,500 control units from the volume contract by the end of 2028, with the realisation period for individual projects set out until 2032.
The new award and contract model involves a large volume to be implemented over the long term, reducing commissioning, planning, constructing, and commissioning processes to just a few years in the future.
Source(in German):