Global Mobility Leaders Discuss Opportunities and Challenges of AI in Public Transport at New Delhi Leadership Roundtable
UITP India, in collaboration with the National Capital Region Transport Corporation (NCRTC), convened the Leadership Roundtable on Artificial Intelligence in Public Transport on 14 October 2026 in New Delhi.
Bringing together 42 leaders and senior representatives from 25 organisations across 9 countries, the roundtable provided a platform for strategic dialogue on the opportunities, challenges and practical considerations surrounding AI adoption in public transport.
The discussion focussed on how transport authorities, operators, technology providers and international institutions can translate AI’s potential to help public transport systems become more efficient, resilient, safe and passenger focused.
The roundtable commenced with the introductory remarks by Ms Rupa Nandy, Head of UITP India, followed by welcome remarks by Mr Mahendra Kumar, Director – Electrical & Rolling Stock, NCRTC.
The international showcase featured perspectives from senior leaders such as Mr Xavier Arrufat, Co-founder & CEO, Awaait Artificial Intelligence, Spain and UITP AI Working Group Chair & UITP IT&T Committee Vice-Chair; Ms Sandra Cerqueira, Co-CEO and Board Member, Transportes Urbanos de Braga, E.M. (TUB), Portugal; and Mr Vesa Silfver, Acting CEO, Helsinki Regional Transport Authority (HSL), Finland. It highlighted practical applications of conversational and
generative AI, the organisational capabilities required to integrate AI into everyday transport operations, and the use of data-driven approaches to personalise passenger services.
Experiences from Spain, Portugal and Finland demonstrated both the opportunities presented by AI and the importance of organisational preparedness for successful implementation.
The Indian showcase brought together perspectives from Mr Mahendra Kumar, NCRTC; Dr. Amit Kumar Jain, Director – Operations and Systems, Delhi Metro Rail Corporation Limited; and Mr Nishant Arya, Chairman, JBM Electric Vehicles (P) Ltd. It explored AI applications across rapid transit and electric bus systems, including NCRTC’s vision of self-healing railway systems, DMRC’s exploration of intelligent customer services and agentic AI, and JBM’s approach to connected
electric buses, charging optimisation and fleet intelligence. These perspectives highlighted the potential of AI to improve system reliability, operational efficiency and passenger experience across different public transport modes.
From AI pilots to mainstream operations
A central theme of the roundtable was the need to move beyond pilots and translate AI’s potential into practical and measurable benefits for public transport systems the discussions focused on the practical conditions needed to scale AI responsibly across public transport systems.
Live audience polling offered insights into the sector’s evolving AI maturity and implementation challenges. While 31% of respondents indicated that their organisations were still exploring AI possibilities, others reported operational use cases or progress towards scaling AI. Skills and organisational capability emerged as the most frequently identified barrier to scaling AI (26%), while developing internal AI skills was the leading immediate priority for public transport leaders (28%). These findings reinforced the importance of organisational readiness alongside technological innovation.
Three key messages emerged from the leadership dialogue. First, AI applications must demonstrate measurable value through improvements in operational performance, service reliability, passenger experience or decision-making. Second, public transport organisations need to strengthen their readiness through better data foundations, organisational capabilities and governance. Third, moving beyond isolated pilots requires clearly defined operational priorities,
accountable teams and solutions designed for scalability. Together, these messages reinforced the importance of approaching AI adoption as an organisational transformation rather than simply a technological initiative. Moderated by Ms Rupa Nandy, head of UITP India, the highly interactive dialogue brought together international and Indian perspective, highlighting the value of exchanging practical experiences and learning from different approaches of AI adoption.
The roundtable demonstrated the value of international knowledge exchange in helping public transport organisations navigate the opportunities and challenges of AI adoption. As public transport organisations navigate this rapidly evolving field, collaboration and access to real-world experiences will be important in supporting informed decision-making and identifying opportunities for practical implementation. UITP can play an important role in connecting authorities, operators and technology providers, facilitating the exchange of practical experiences, documenting real-world applications and bringing common implementation challenges into its existing international networks and working groups and forums.
UITP India extends its sincere appreciation to NCRTC for hosting the roundtable, to the speakers for sharing their valuable insights and experiences, and to all the participants for contributing to
an engaging and constructive dialogue.