SBB consults Europapark experts

SBB wants to turn its stations into places of experience. To do so, it is working with Europapark and adopting ideas from Disney. Will there soon be interactive exhibitions in the station?

The railway stations are SBB's calling card. Now an unusual partner is to help beautify them: Europapark. SBB specialists met with experts from the amusement park in Rust, Germany, last December - to "get inspiration", according to a post by the real estate team.

SBB can no longer score points with basic services - such as cleanliness. "Clean and safe stations are taken for granted, are expected of us and do not arouse any emotions," writes Bruno Lochbrunner, head of conceptual station management. "We need to focus even more on emotions, humanity and comfort."

Pianos and apps

In the search for guidelines to which a theme park should adhere, they came across "Mickey's 10 Commandments" - the ten commandments of Disney's Mickey Mouse. Three of them are particularly interesting for SBB. Firstly, employees should visit the facilities themselves as often as possible. Secondly, it is important to use all non-verbal forms of communication, such as colour, shape or texture. And thirdly, an amusement park - or a railway station from SBB's point of view - must have a clear identity.

The first steps have already been taken, for example, with the placement of pianos in numerous stations in Switzerland, where passers-by can play. Last autumn, SBB also had musicians perform in the stations. The "Fast Lane" app function for faster shopping is also mentioned as an example.

Light, Colour, Virtual Reality

SBB received various ideas from Europapark on greening, colour, light and digitalisation. One promising method is storytelling to convey information.

Noel Ebhart, spokesperson for Europapark, says that one possibility they have discussed with SBB is "location-based entertainment". This refers to applications based on virtual reality. For example, virtual reality goggles are offered at a certain location with which artificial rooms can be entered.

In addition, SBB could rely more on scent, sounds and light in the future. "This can appeal to all the senses," says Europapark spokesperson Ebhart. But thanks to the Europapark, commuters could also be encouraged to learn. "Another idea is an interactive travelling exhibition on the history of the Swiss railway, which can be adapted to the different sizes of the stations," says Ebhart.

It is not yet clear which ideas will be implemented and when. The SBB group was "very interested", according to Europapark. SBB itself says it is "looking forward to informing the public as soon as the first ideas have been implemented".

Source: aargauerzeitung / 20Min