Successful Winter School 2024
This year's topic was focusing on Autonomous Public Transport, attracting participants from all over the European Union.
February 13th was the first day of the second Winter School of our Graduate School. International doctoral students were invited to come to Karlsruhe and spend a week talking intensively about a topic together with the members of the school. Yesterday, 15 doctoral students from all over Europe arrived. Spain, Portugal, Italy, Great Britain, Israel and Hungary were represented. The topic of this year's Winter School is autonomous public transport. The day began with a number of keynote speeches by KIT staff and initial presentations on the guests' research projects. This was followed in the afternoon by a workshop led by the Institute of Transportation and further presentations by the invited doctoral students. The day ended with a networking event that lasted until late in the evening.
The second day of the Winter School began with guided tours of various laboratories at KIT and the FZI. Here, the international guests and members of the school were able to gain an insight into various research projects that the different mobility researchers in Karlsruhe are currently working on. With many impressions, the afternoon was then spent in a longer workshop on the topic of "Designing mobility hubs", which was led by KIT-ECON. The evening was once again dedicated to networking, which included a reflection on the day's experiences.
On the third day of the Winter School, similar to the first day, keynote speeches were given by representatives from Karlsruhe alternating with presentations by invited guests. Extensive coffee breaks between the presentations provided time to discuss what had just been heard. Lunch was followed by a two-hour workshop in which the participants developed requirements that autonomous public transport systems must meet in order to increase their acceptance.
The last day of the Winter School offered the international guests a cultural program before they started their journey home. A city tour through the center of Karlsruhe gave them an understanding of the history and development of the city as well as its mobility needs and explained one or two special features. The Winter School program ended at lunchtime and the participants set off for their home universities.