Project

Crime prevention at the new train station in Bern

The Swiss Federal Railways (SBB) train station in Bern is undergoing a gradual transformation: larger, more comfortable, and more pleasant. During the planning phase, we at EBP examined ways of enhancing future security at the site.

We first assessed the security situation at the current SBB train station in Bern, with the express aim of identifying any specific security threats.

Objective security and subjective perceptions of security

Our main task was then to use the latest planning data (drawings, journals, interview results) to assess expected objective security and expected subjective perceptions of security at the new train station. The focus here was on the new station building itself and the immediate vicinity of the train station, particularly those areas near the entranceways.

Workshops lead to 51 security-enhancement proposals

Our crime-prevention assessment was based primarily on two workshops, each of which involved the participation of around 20 crime-prevention experts, including, for instance, experts from various SBB units, police officers from the Bern Cantonal Police Department and members of Bern’s Prevention, Intervention and Tolerance (PINTO) team.

The workshop results included 51 conceptual, structural, technical and operational security-enhancement proposals, as well as other recommendations for improving security at the train station that would warrant consideration in the further course of planning.

Valuable input and support was also provided by our own EBP specialists working in the area of urban psychology, and by Christian Weicht, a renowned crime-prevention expert.

Contact persons