A sustainable solution to the traffic problems of modern metropolitan areas is hardly conceivable without rail-based public transport. Accordingly, the number of passengers using local public transport has risen continuously in recent years. Operators are preparing for further growth and are responding, for example, by increasing the frequency of services, expanding the range by setting up new lines and using new vehicles with higher capacities. Infrastructural measures such as expanding the network and enlarging stations are lagging behind demand and are difficult to implement in the context of European conditions. This inevitably leads to higher passenger numbers in stations, combined with a growing risk of overcrowded platforms and thus also crowding and congestion, including gridlock.

The aim of the CroMa (Crowd Management in Transport Infrastructures) project is to ensure the safety and performance of railroad stations in regular traffic and in the event of spontaneous or plannable incidents through suitable crowd management, improved regulations and also through adapted cross-organizational instructions.

The project partners are

• the Jülich Research Center
• Ruhr University Bochum
• Düsseldorf Congress
• the university of Wuppertal with the departments "Civil Protection, Disaster Relief and Facility Safety" (Prof. Frank Fiedrich) and "Computer Simulation for Fire Protection and Pedestrian Traffic" (Prof. Armin Seyfried)

Associated partners are

• the Swiss Federal Railways
• the Cologne Transport Authority
• German Railways
• DB Analytics
• the Federal Police
• EPS
• Special Security Services
• City of Düsseldorf, Fire and Rescue Service
• VDV - The transport companies
• the Rheinbahn AG

Two doctoral projects are planned at the chair as part of CroMa. Ms. Olga Sablik is investigating crowd management measures at events and Ms. Mira Küpper is studying the movement of people on platforms.

Further information can be found on the project website. (Link)

Project duration: 08/2018 - 12/2022

Contact: Prof. Armin Seyfried, Olga Sablik, Mira Küpper

The project is funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research.