National Conference on AI in Public Transport Opens in Wejherowo

A two-day conference on artificial intelligence in public transport is starting in Wejherowo. The Urban Transport Chamber of Commerce (Izba Gospodarcza Komunikacji Miejskiej, IGKM), together with the Wejherowo Municipal Transport Company (Miejski Zakład Komunikacji Wejherowo, MZK Wejherowo), has invited operators from across Poland to a meeting titled "AI in Urban Transport - From Data to Decisions."

The Urban Transport Chamber of Commerce is a nationwide organization bringing together bus and tram operators, from large cities to smaller transport companies like Wejherowo's MZK. The choice of this particular city as host is no coincidence, the event coincides with the 45th anniversary of the local carrier, giving the meeting an extra festive dimension.

Three Thematic Tracks

The program is divided into three parts. The first covers practical AI implementation without large budgets, including the use of Google Gemini in operators' daily work and building custom chatbots. The second focuses on solutions aimed directly at passengers, voice information systems, and announcements at stops and on vehicles. The third covers process automation, transport data preparation, and the security of the infrastructure on which that data is processed.

This approach reflects a real problem faced by small and medium-sized carriers in Poland: most don't have budgets comparable to large metropolitan areas, yet they still face the same challenges, delays, fleet breakdowns, and passengers' growing expectations for digital service.

Data to Decisions

The conference's motto, "from data to decisions," points to the direction the public transport industry is heading. Instead of reacting to breakdowns and delays after the fact, operators want to use AI models to predict problems before they affect schedules, from forecasting line loads to early detection of vehicle faults.

Dynamic passenger information systems, mentioned in the program, are no longer a novelty in large cities, but their spread to smaller centers like Wejherowo is only just beginning. The conference aims to show participants how to implement similar tools without having to build them from scratch.

Depot and Hydrogen on Day Two

On the second day, participants will visit the MZK Wejherowo depot, which has a hydrogen refueling station, and tour the Kashubian-Pomeranian Museum of Writing and Music (Muzeum Piśmiennictwa i Muzyki Kaszubsko-Pomorskiej), known as the GRYF Museum. Combining technology presentations with the anniversary program and a local tourist attraction underscores that the Wejherowo carrier is celebrating 45 years in business just as the industry enters a new stage of digitalization.

Why This Matters for Smaller Cities

Conferences focused explicitly on artificial intelligence in public transport are still rare in Poland, especially when the organizer is a local transport company rather than a capital-city operator. For smaller cities without their own IT departments or budgets for major deployments, industry gatherings like this are often the main source of knowledge about what AI tools even exist and what they actually cost.

The program shows an emphasis on financially attainable solutions rather than showcase pilot projects with no bearing on day-to-day operations. It signals that AI in urban transport is no longer the domain of only the largest metropolitan areas.