Different modes of transport encounter each other at level crossings, which is why clear rules are necessary to protect everyone involved. In Germany, behaviour is regulated by the Railway Construction and Operating Regulations on the railway side and the Road Traffic Regulations on the road side: rail vehicles always have right of way, as indicated by the St Andrew’s cross. Responsibilities are regulated by the Railway Crossing Act. Various safety measures are used depending on the volume of traffic. Non-technical safety measures at level crossings rely on visibility, speed reduction for rail and road traffic, and acoustic signals from trains. However, the latter leads to high noise pollution for the environment and residents, which also affects the acceptance of the rail system. Additional technical safety measures are often not considered for little-used level crossings due to high costs.

The ATTRACTIVE project is therefore developing a new, cost-effective technological approach to investigate the effectiveness of technical support for improving the safety of non-technical protected level crossings. The aim is to draw the attention of road users to the level crossing. To this end, a mobile traffic light is to be installed in front of the level crossing, which in turn can be automatically controlled from the train via a transponder. When a train approaches the level crossing, the traffic light first switches via amber to red. Once the train has crossed the level crossing, the traffic light switches off again. This will emphasize the right-of-way rule, which is already required by law, to road users, in addition to the existing safety measures with St. Andrew’s crosses. A green phase is intentionally not foreseen; the St. Andrew’s cross signs will continue to apply. The aim of the research is to find out whether such technical safety support could eventually replace the acoustic whistle signals of trains and whether safety would be perceived as the same or higher.

At the beginning of December 2025, the technical feasibility of this modern approach to technical safety support for a level crossing was demonstraed in Traundorf in the municipality of Siegsdorf on the Traunstein – Ruhpolding line by the ATTRACTIVE project team together with the infrastructure operator (DB RegioNetz) and the railway undertaking (Bayerische Regiobahn – BRB) with the support of the municipality of Siegsdorf. We would like to thank all the companies involved and, in particular, Mayor Kamm of the municipality of Siegsdorf for their tramendous support!

The project ATTRACTIVE is funded by the Federal Ministry of Digital and Transport as part of the mFUND innovation initiative.