National Public Transport Congress · 4th edition

Organised by the Romanian Smart City Association in partnership with URTP - the Romanian Union of Public Transport | the Federation of Urban, Suburban and Metropolitan Passenger Transport OperatorsOrganised by ARSC in partnership with URTP | TUSMC Federation

ROPAT 2026 Hackathon

ROPAT 2026 Hackathon: new ideas for public transport

Five real problems facing public transport in Romania, five challenges. Teams propose solutions, and the best ones go on stage at ROPAT 2026, in front of operators, public authorities and industry.

Register your team → See the challenges
Why a hackathon

Public transport also needs ideas from outside the sector.

Public transport operators have been facing the same problems for years: buses running late, passengers choosing the car, towns that are poorly connected, and costs rising faster than budgets.

The ROPAT 2026 Hackathon brings together developers, designers, engineers, urban planners, students and people working for operators. They work in teams on real problems and propose solutions that can be put into practice in Romanian cities.

We are not looking for polished slides. We are looking for ideas that could work tomorrow on a bus route, in a depot or on a passenger's phone.

HACKATHON ROPAT 2026
5 challengesreal problems facing public transport in Romania
2-5people per team
Freetaking part costs nothing
Final at ROPATfinalist teams present their solution at the congress
The challenges

Five problems. One condition: the solution must be workable in practice.

Each team picks one challenge. The directions below are examples, not limits: any well-argued idea is welcome.

Challenge 1

Delays and unpredictable service

How can we reduce delays and improve schedule adherence for buses, trams and trolleybuses, so that public transport becomes faster, more efficient and more predictable?

What we expect

Solutions that show where and why time is lost along a route, and that win it back: in traffic, at stops, during boarding or in planning.

Possible directions

  • traffic signal priority for buses and trams
  • arrival time forecasts based on fleet GPS data
  • a map of where each line loses time
  • timetables built on real running times, not theoretical ones
Challenge 2

Low appeal of public transport

How can we convince more people to leave their car at home and choose public transport, through innovative solutions that improve the passenger experience?

What we expect

Ideas that make a trip by public transport simpler, more comfortable or better value than the same trip by car, for real people on their everyday journeys.

Possible directions

  • clear real-time information, at the stop and on the phone
  • paying by bank card or phone, with no extra apps
  • rewards for frequent travellers
  • a cost and time comparison with the car, for each person's own journey
Challenge 3

Poor integration of urban and metropolitan transport

How can we connect towns, operators and transport modes more effectively, so that passengers enjoy simple, fast and integrated journeys?

What we expect

Solutions that turn several operators, towns and transport modes into a single journey: one route, one ticket, one source of information.

Possible directions

  • a single ticket across operators and towns
  • a journey planner covering the whole metropolitan area
  • timed connections between bus, tram and train
  • timetables published in the standard GTFS format, so that any app can use them
Challenge 4

High costs and inefficient use of resources

How can we cut operating costs and make better use of fleets, energy and infrastructure, without lowering the quality of service for passengers?

What we expect

Tools that bring down the cost per kilometre without bringing down quality: less energy used, fewer breakdowns, vehicles and staff deployed more effectively.

Possible directions

  • maintenance that anticipates faults from vehicle data
  • charging electric buses at better times and rates
  • scheduling shifts and vehicles across routes
  • monitoring energy use and driving style
Challenge 5

REINVENT PUBLIC TRANSPORT 2035: reinvent urban mobility!

If you could rebuild the public transport system of a Romanian city from scratch for the year 2035, what would it look like?

Propose a radically new mobility model, using emerging technologies, artificial intelligence, autonomous vehicles, on-demand transport or entirely new concepts that could transform the way people get around.

What we expect

A bold model, but an explained one: how people travel, who runs the service, how it is paid for and what needs to be in place by 2035. Vision matters, and so does the path from what we have today to what you propose.

Possible directions

  • on-demand transport in areas with few passengers
  • autonomous vehicles on dedicated routes
  • a single subscription for all of the city's mobility
  • artificial intelligence that adjusts the network in real time
Who can take part

Anyone who wants to work on public transport.

The hackathon is open to everyone aged 18 and over: students and researchers, developers, designers and data analysts, engineers, urban planners and mobility specialists, start-ups and technology companies, and staff of transport operators and public administrations.

Teams have between 2 and 5 members. If you are on your own, tell us in the form and we will help you find a team. We recommend mixed teams, with people from inside and outside the transport sector.

What you submit

An explained idea and proof that it works.

  • A description of up to two pages: the problem, the solution, who uses it, its approximate cost and what a pilot project would look like.
  • A prototype: code, an app, screen mock-ups, a simulation or anything else that shows the idea works.
  • Optionally, a video of up to 3 minutes.
How it works

Four steps, from registration to the ROPAT stage.

By 16 November

Registration

Fill in the form below. You will receive a confirmation and the details by email.

16-18 November

Building the solution

Teams work online, from wherever they like. Send us your questions by email.

18 November, 23:59

Submission

Email your description and prototype to [email protected].

21 November, at ROPAT

The final

The finalist teams, one per challenge, present their solution in 5 minutes at the congress, in Bucharest.

How we assess

Five criteria, known from the start.

Solutions are assessed by a jury made up of representatives of public transport operators, universities and the Romanian Smart City Association (ARSC).

The finalist teams present their solution at ROPAT 2026 and receive certificates. Prizes will be announced before the final.

Impact for passengers and operators30%
How easily it can be put into practice in Romania25%
Originality of the idea20%
Cost and potential to be adopted by other cities15%
Clarity of the presentation10%
Rules

The rules, in short.

  1. Taking part is free. There is nothing to pay, either to register or at the final.
  2. Teams have between 2 and 5 members, all aged 18 or over. Each person belongs to one team only.
  3. Each team picks one challenge and states it in the form.
  4. The solution is made by the team, for the hackathon. You may use open-source code, public data and artificial intelligence tools, as long as you say what you used.
  5. The idea and the code belong to the team. The organisers may publish the team name, the challenge and a summary of the solution.
  6. Anything submitted after the deadline is not assessed.
  7. The jury's decision is final.
  8. Questions? Write to us at [email protected].
Registration

Register your team

One form for the whole team, filled in by one of its members.

The data in this form is processed by the Romanian Smart City Association (ARSC), Bd. Pipera nr. 1-IA, Voluntari, Ilfov, Romania, solely to organise the hackathon. We do not pass it on for commercial purposes. To exercise your rights, write to [email protected]. Details in our privacy policy (in Romanian).

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