What if air/rail intermodality were to enter a new era? This is the ambition of Trenitalia and ITA Airways. This ambition was recently formalised with the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the two major players in the Italian travel industry.
" The signing of this Memorandum of Understanding with the Ferrovie dello Stato Italiane Group represents a new stage in a process begun in 2023 around the development of the integrated Air-Rail ticket, a fast-growing product which confirms passengers' interest in increasingly interconnected travel solutions. "says Joerg Eberhart, CEO of ITA Airways.
" Today, we want to go one step further: through the intelligent use of Artificial Intelligence, we will be able to take structural action on the operational obstacles to the intermodal experience, by simplifying processes, anticipating customer needs and making travel more efficient and sustainable. "continues Joerg Eberhart.
A joint laboratory will soon be up and running
For the time being, this intelligent intermodality advocated by ITA Airways and Trenitalia remains rather vague. But the creation of a joint "AI Intermodality and Sustainability Lab" should soon give more substance to the project. This new laboratory will be dedicated to "the design, development and experimentation of use cases based on Artificial Intelligence and data, focusing in particular on intermodality, optimising travel flows, predictive demand management and reducing CO₂ emissions", according to those in charge of the project.
The AI Intermodality and Sustainability Lab's roadmap includes the removal of obstacles affecting the continuity of journeys and the combined use of different modes of transport, with optimised connections between airport hubs, rail stations and major attractions. New digital services are also expected.
A promising agreement, then, but with concrete results still to come. Italian travellers - and business travellers in particular - will have to wait for the laboratory's first tangible achievements before deciding on the real scope of this intermodal ambition.
