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Linnea Decker

GenAI for crisis management in the mobility sector: final presentation in the “Future Mobility Lab” project seminar

As part of the final presentation of the “Future Mobility Lab” project seminar, students presented a prototype and dashboard that helps Transdev employees make quick and informed decisions in crisis situations. The project, which focuses on the use of GenAI in crisis management in the mobility sector, was developed in collaboration with Transdev - a company of the Rethmann Group and Germany's second-largest rail and bus company.

The students developed a dashboard and programmed a Large Language Model (LLM) that uses real-time data and crisis manuals in critical scenarios - such as accidents, storms, or absenteeism - to provide sound decision support. In their presentation, they explained the underlying mode of operation, software architecture, and data structure. They provided insight into the evaluation of the LLM for the specific application.

The dashboard shows, among other things, the currently running trains and their delays. The interactive bot that allows user interaction was also presented. In a live demonstration, the students presented the functional prototype of the LLM/bot, which was extensively tested by the attendees. Edge cases were also analyzed and explored.

Five representatives from Transdev – including the Managing Director, Regional Manager, Data Lead and members of the Innovation Team – attended the presentation, underlining the strong interest in the collaboration and the project.

After the successful final presentation of the project seminar, the group embarked on a two-day excursion, which first took them to Transdev’s workshops and operations in Germany, and later to the Netherlands. The excursion began with a company presentation at Nordwestbahn, an important partner in public transport. Following this, the participants gained detailed insights into the maintenance and technology of the trains during a workshop tour. A particularly exciting part of the tour was the opportunity to not only inspect the technical details under the train but also to visit the train driver's cabin and even board the train to experience the technical infrastructure firsthand. The second part of the excursion took the group to the Netherlands, where they visited one of the largest E-bus fleets and its associated workshop. In addition, the participants were informed about the latest developments in electromobility at a training facility. A highlight of the trip was the opportunity for some participants to drive an actual passenger bus through Haarlem for around 15 minutes, under the guidance of an instructor. This unique hands-on experience provided invaluable insights into the operation of public transportation. After these impactful experiences, the group finally returned to Münster.

The project, focused on the use of GenAI in crisis management in the mobility sector, will now be presented internally to colleagues by Transdev's Data Lead.