Autonomous manoeuvres in depots? Bernmobil is seriously considering it

Bernmobil’s busiest depot, operated by the public transport company of Bern, Switzerland, could benefit from autonomous depot manoeuvres

Autonomous Systems announced that the Eigerplatz depot has obtained “Smartbus Ready” certification following a structured “Depot Autonomy Readiness Assessment” dedicated to autonomous depot manoeuvres, namely smartbus operations (vehicles capable of moving and parking inside the depot without a driver on board).

Eigerplatz is Bernmobil’s main operating base in the city centre and functions as a fully enclosed multi-storey depot, with parking areas distributed across two levels. The assessment describes manoeuvres at Eigerplatz among the most demanding in comparable European depot operations, with daily reverse parking manoeuvres for 12- and 18-metre buses.

«Eigerplatz is one of the most operationally complex depots in our network — tight parking bays, multi-storey vehicle movements and routine reverse parking are just some of the challenges of this depot, whose layout has been modified several times over more than 100 years of operation. This readiness assessment shows us the potential benefits that autonomous operations could offer even in such a complex depot», said Bernhard Riegel, Project Manager at Bernmobil.

Smart depots can reduce operating costs

Autonomous Systems calculated an estimated payback period of approximately 4.9 years and an ROI of 89% over 12 years, based on a 12-year vehicle lifecycle and a hypothetical fleet of 100 buses operating at the depot, considering the following assumptions:

• recovery of 10–15 minutes of driver time per bus per day thanks to automated depot manoeuvres and parking
• approximately 9,125 driver hours recovered annually (more than 5 FTEs) in the “difficult scenario”, reflecting daily reverse parking operations and peak-hour conditions

«Autonomy becomes tangible when it delivers measurable operational value every day. Depots represent the ideal starting point: low speeds, controlled environments and immediate ROI. Eigerplatz is a highly complex site, which is precisely why the potential benefits can be so significant», said Jan Gramatyka, Co-CEO of Autonomous Systems.

Why depot autonomy, and why now

Because Eigerplatz is private property, the assessment highlights that autonomous manoeuvres inside the facility do not require public-road homologation, provided that operational limits, safety measures and emergency procedures are properly defined.

The assessment also notes that access to the upper level includes a short stretch of public road, meaning that initial deployments can focus on operations within the depot’s private perimeter while a broader operational scope is being evaluated.

Beyond productivity, the assessment also highlights a strategic safety benefit for battery-electric bus operations: predefined autonomous vehicle repositioning routines could support emergency management by moving vehicles away from a fire-affected area without requiring staff to enter a hazardous zone.

Recommended deployment path

The assessment proposes a staged rollout: 

• Preparation – 3D mapping, operational boundaries, pedestrian management procedures for the public corridor through the building, and peak-hour throughput modelling;
• Technical validation – initial ground-floor deployment focused on inbound parking and positioning for charging;
• Operational validation and expansion – extend manoeuvres (car wash passage, service-bay positioning, overnight shunting) and expand scope following successful validation.