Bombardier Transportation unveiled its new safety system for urban light rail vehicles at the UITP Global Public Transportation Summit in Stockholm. Called COMPAS (Collision and Overspeed Monitoring and Prevention Assistance System), the technology was developed in cooperation with Bombardier Transportation’s research partner the Austrian Institute of Technology & Mission Embedded and enhances safety for tram passengers and drivers.

COMPAS is the transportation industry’s only system that combines two of the most requested driver assistance functions, a vision-based overspeed prevention and an automated obstacle detection assistance system, according to the company. It’s designed to ensure the driver always maintains full control over the vehicle by using digital track data and visual odometry to prevent the vehicle from exceeding its pre-defined speed limits, thus enhancing safety for those in and around the vehicle.

The new system is expected to be granted commercial service authorization by mid-2020, with additional functions, such as increased vehicle autonomy enabling automated operation in depots, planned to for future integration.

COMPAS builds upon Bombardier’s Obstacle Detection Assistance System, a safety system in passenger service since being introduced in Frankfurt, Germany in 2017.