Overview
HADAG Seetouristik und Fährdienst AG (HADAG) provides waterside passenger transportation in the Port of Hamburg. Operating on eight routes with over 600 daily departures, this subsidiary of Hamburger Hochbahn AG (HHA) transports more than 10 million passengers annually using 27 ferries.
Wolfgang Mularzyk, responsible for HADAG’s digitalization strategy, shares his experience in transforming HADAG’s planning, dispatching, and passenger information systems with the help of Optibus.
Challenge
- Accurate planning: Ferries travel by waterway routes that make distance and timetables less predictable than surface passenger transport. Wolfgang Mularzyk, Project Manager of Digitalization at HADAG, notes, “We do not move on the road, so the route is not always as accurate as with a bus line.”
- Crew scheduling: HADAG’s ferries are often operated by a single skipper, necessitating specialized duty scheduling considerations.
- Passenger information: HADAG’s ferry network runs according to timetables and needed to supply service information systems with up-to-date data. As the last operating company within Hamburger Verkehrsverbund (hvv), Hamburg’s public transportation network, to provide real-time data, HADAG had one more reason to seek a digitalization solution.
- Technological limitations: These challenges are compounded by the lack of digital solutions for ferry operators.
Solution
HADAG’s decision to adopt Optibus’ cloud-native software was solidified by Optibus’ ability to deliver fast and precise software onboarding, which is a distinct advantage in the market for transportation management platforms.
The fast onboarding process further helped HADAG to expedite their digital transformation journey, which kicked off with a focus on modernizing deployment planning and digitizing and standardizing data for their new digital passenger information system.
Optibus’ comprehensive SaaS platform for Planning, Scheduling, Rostering, and Operations perfectly met their requirements, making it the ideal choice for HADAG.
This strategic decision not only streamlined HADAG’s operations but also aligned seamlessly with their broader digitalization strategy, ensuring future-proof and transparent operations for the organization.
Results
- Providing a better passenger experience using real-time data
HADAG has been working to launch a new digital passenger information system based on real-time data. Optibus plays a crucial role in generating high-quality target timetable data for that system.
HADAG is also developing a control center system for coordinating daily ferry operations and providing real-time timetable data. This ensures that passengers receive accurate, up-to-date information about ferry schedules, improving their overall experience.
With the introduction of HADAG’s new passenger information system, which leverages Optibus for target timetable data, real-time information will now be accessible for all modes of transportation within Hamburger Verkehrsverbund. Optibus plays a supportive role in providing crucial target timetable data for the system.
- Employee Satisfaction and Recruitment
HADAG is also addressing the challenge of staff shortages, using Optibus to enhance employee satisfaction by creating more attractive duty rosters and schedules.
“We, too, are dealing with staff shortages, which have various causes,” says Wolfgang. “Higher employee satisfaction will help to counteract this and make HADAG a more attractive employer in passenger transport in the Port of Hamburg.”
