European Commission Supports the Deployment of Cloud Mobile Apps for Public Transport in Germany

KARLSRUHE, Germany and STOCKHOLM, April 9, 2013 /PRNewswire/ --

EC Funded MobiCloud Project makes Karlsruhe Public Transport safer, greener and more efficient   

Nettropolis and the MobiCloud consortium announced today the deployment of innovative mobile cloud services for the personnel of the Karlsruhe Public Transport Authority (Verkehrsbetriebe Karlsruhe or VBK), as part of the MobiCloud project, an initiative funded by the European Commission under the ICT Policy Support Programme (PSP) Competitiveness and Innovation framework Programme (CIP).

The MobiCloud platform aims to make public transport greener, safer and more efficient by improving the coordination between staff using standard smartphones and tablets. The VBK deployment provides a suite of cloud applications for mobile control center staff and field staff involved in vehicle operations. The applications will deliver:

• Operational cost savings, through control center communications efficiency improvements
• Shorter passenger journeys, through real-time communication of incidents to vehicle staff
• Better compliance through improved fault attribution
• Cleanliness improvements through incident reporting
• Better informed staff
• Improved overall customer satisfaction

VBK is recognized worldwide for its forward-thinking tram-train integrated model, where city trains run in the region as fast trains and continue flexibly in the city as trams. Dr. Walter Casazza, CEO of VBK, commented: "Efficient and fast information flow is essential for safety and incident management. Not only will passengers benefit through improved information on traffic disruptions, but also vehicle operations teams by accessing real time information. We are delighted to team up with Nettropolis to upgrade our mobile application with the latest technologies, and to develop new features for our company."

Nettropolis' Head of Development Holger Kammerer commented "Using MobiCloud will enable us to focus on delivering the business logic to meet VBK's goals - to optimize processes and reduce workload for all stakeholders."

The MobiCloud consortium is led by Appear (Sweden) and includes Nettropolis (Germany), EsperantoXL (the Netherlands), Costain (UK) and COMIT Projects (UK). The project's focus is to stimulate the provision of new mobile services in the cloud and to support the emergence of a European ecosystem of mobile cloud application developers.

Organizations wishing to join the MobiCloud ecosystem are encouraged to join the Early Adopter Program where they will gain access to a MobiCloud testbed where they can develop and run applications for any industry, in any country. Contact us at info@mobicloudproject.eu

Media Contacts:

Milica Radic
milica.radic@nettropolis.de
+49-725196430