Enhancing Passenger Experience – AI in Transport Competition (United Kingdom)

This competition seeks real-world examples of AI applications that demonstrate scalability, practical feasibility, and measurable outcomes, all aimed towards enhancing passenger experience.

The Enhancing Passenger Experience – AI in Transport Competition is designed to explore how Artificial Intelligence (AI) can revolutionise passenger experience, delivering faster, cleaner, and more affordable journeys for all. In line with the government’s vision, the competition seeks innovative ideas that embed responsible AI into a resilient transport system.

AI has the potential to optimise planning, automate processes, and enhance decisionmaking. From predictive maintenance to automated inspections, AI can speed up service delivery, reduce staff workloads through tools like automated drafting and coding, and improve accessibility by making information easier to understand and use.

Objectives 

• Encourage Innovation: Promote the development of AI solutions that address critical transport challenges.
• Highlight ROI Potential: Showcase the financial and operational benefits of AI solutions to attract investor confidence and demonstrate long-term value.
• Support Government Goals: Align AI innovations with the government’s overarching priorities, including sustainability, accessibility, and efficiency.
• Identify Barriers: Explore practical challenges to implementation and provide strategies for overcoming them.

Scope 

• With a focus on passenger experience, this competition seeks solutions that complement the government’s key priorities for transport.
• In alignment with the government’s key priorities for transport, this competition focuses on how AI can enhance passenger experience across the UK’s transport networks.
• They are seeking innovative solutions in the form of use case proposals that address the most pressing challenges faced by passengers/transport users, aiming to create more reliable, efficient, and accessible transport systems.
• Use case submissions for this competition must target a critical area where AI can make a meaningful impact in transport on passenger experience.
• When submitting your application, you will be asked to select up to two of the government priorities below that your AI-driven solution best complements:
  • Improving Performance on the Railways and Driving Forward Rail Reform
  • Improving Bus Services and Growing Usage Across the Country
  • Transforming Infrastructure to Promote Social Mobility and Tackle Regional Inequality
  • Delivering Greener Transport
  • Better Integrating Transport Networks

Funding Information

• Up to 25 applicants will be accepted onto Phase One and will receive up to £2,000 to develop their use cases in February 2025.
• In Phase Two, programme participants will then be shortlisted down to approximately 10, each of which will be invited to pitch their solution to a panel of experts and senior leaders. The expert panel session will take place in London in early March (date to be confirmed closer to the time).
• Up to three finalists will move into Phase Three of the scheme, where each participant will receive a further grant of up to £13,000 to develop a business case over three months (April – June 2025). The three finalists will also pitch their solution at the Connected Places Catapult’s summit (19 March 2025).

Eligibility Criteria

• This programme is open to all UK Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) only.
• Applications from large organisations (including universities) will not be accepted.
• Eligibility criteria is as follows:
  • You must be a UK-registered business.
  • You must be an SME, as defined in the footnote.
  • Your solution must be TRL 2-6.

For more information, visit Connected Places Catapult.