Polish technology company Autonomous Systems has completed an autonomy readiness assessment of the BERNMOBIL bus depot at Eigerplatz in Bern, Switzerland, assigning the facility “Smartbus Ready” status.
The assessment is the first in Switzerland to examine readiness for autonomous depot manoeuvres and the first to focus on a multi-storey bus depot. The study considered the potential for autonomous vehicles to navigate and park within the depot without a driver on board.
Eigerplatz serves as BERNMOBIL’s main operating base in central Bern. The enclosed depot includes parking areas on two levels and handles both 12 metre and 18 metre buses. Routine reverse parking and the site’s layout currently create operational challenges for depot movements.
Bernhard Riegel, Project Manager at BERNMOBIL, said:Eigerplatz is one of the most operationally demanding depots in our network - tight bays, multi-storey movements, and routine reverse parking are some of the challenges of this depot, whose layout has been modified time and again over more than 100 years of operation. This readiness assessment shows us the potential an autonomous operation could offer even to this complex depot.
Autonomous Systems’ modelling indicated a projected payback period of 4.9 years and an estimated return on investment of 89% over a 12-year period.
The calculations were based on an illustrative fleet of 100 buses operating from the depot over a 12-year vehicle lifecycle. Assumptions included the recovery of between 10 and 15 minutes of driver time per vehicle each day through automated parking and depot manoeuvres.
The company estimated that 9,125 driver hours per year could be recovered, reflecting daily reverse parking and peak-hour operating conditions. This equates to more than five full-time equivalent positions.
The assessment proposes a staged implementation programme. The preparation phase would include 3D mapping, operational boundary definition, pedestrian management procedures for the public corridor running through the building, and modelling of peak-hour vehicle movements.
A technical validation phase would initially focus on inbound parking and vehicle positioning for charging on the ground floor. A later operational validation phase would examine additional manoeuvres, including movements through the bus wash, positioning in service bays and overnight shunting, before extending deployment more widely.
Jan Gramatyka, Co-CEO of Autonomous Systems, said:Autonomy becomes real when it delivers measurable operational value, every day. Depots are the practical starting point - low speeds, controlled space, and immediate ROI. Eigerplatz is a high-complexity site, which is exactly why the payoff can be so significant. Beyond productivity, the assessment highlights strategic safety value for battery-electric operations: predefined autonomous repositioning routines can support emergency response by moving vehicles away from a fire-affected area without requiring staff to enter a hazardous zone.
