Public transport strike! Baptism by fire for the EMS
This week’s strike by public sector employees caused the entire subway system in Munich to grind to a halt. Drivers for numerous tram lines were also on strike. Thousands of commuters and students were affected. “Strike: Currently no subway service”, could be seen on displays at subway platforms all around Munich. What seems like a nightmare for control center employees was actually a baptism by fire for the MVG’s new EMS system, which was developed by Munich-based MENTZ GmbH.
Early in the morning, information about the strike was already scrolling across the 1,100 displays of the Munich public transport authority (MVG) – simultaneously and consistently. Over 3,400 messages were sent to the displays by the MVG control center. At tram and bus stops, passengers were informed in advance about alternative connections.
EMS Proved its Mettle
“Despite a high load on the system, everything worked out well,” reported a senior project manager at MENTZ. After such a significant stress test, customer feedback was very positive. “We were able to quickly gather passenger information and supply it to our customers at a very high level,” said the MVG’s “Team Leader for Passenger Information.”
MENTZ’s EMS is a real information hub for a variety of different media, like audio systems, smartphones and digital displays, which can be conveniently supplied with incident notifications from a centralized content management system. In addition to ready-made initial notifications, customer information can also be flexibly distrubutied with updates and customizations for specific locations within seconds. Consistent, comprehensive and up-to-date passenger information is vitally important during abnormal situations like a strike, also in order to maintain reliable as a mobility partner in exceptional circumstances.
Around nine o’clock in the evening, MVG control center staff were able to send out the best news of the day through the EMS: “Strike has ended! The subways are running on schedule again.”
