New AI software to be rolled out on Berlin S-Bahn ticket control system

The IT system used by controllers on the Berlin S-Bahn network will soon integrate AI software to help them check passengers' tickets more effectively.

Ticket control system on Berlin S-Bahn will use AI

According to a report by local newspaper Berliner Morgenpost, the IT system used by Berlin S-Bahn ticket controllers will soon incorporate AI software to help controllers work more effectively.

The AI software will process information to let controllers know which trains are “high priority” or “low priority” for checks, and on which trains passengers do not need to be checked. 

Head of Passenger Marketing at S-Bahn Berlin, Jörg Mühling, said that once the system is adopted, controllers will better understand which trains their colleagues have already checked, so that passengers aren’t checked twice within a short period. The time that employees will have to wait before being assigned a new train to control should also be reduced.

Fewer ticket checks on Berlin U-Bahns, more checks on S-Bahns

Last year, a record-breaking number of people used public transport in Berlin. While controls on Berlin’s U-Bahns fell by nearly 50 percent in 2024, controls on S-Bahn trains increased slightly. 

U-Bahn passengers were controlled 3,4 million times in 2024, while S-Bahn passengers were controlled 11,1 million times. In 2019, S-Bahn passengers were controlled much less often, 9,3 million times over the course of the year.

2025 passenger figures, including the number of passengers caught riding without a ticket, are due to be published at the end of December.