A glimpse into the future of local public transport

Anyone interested is invited to attend the talk by Dr Dominik Ziemke from the DLR Institute of Transport Research in Berlin, which will take place in the Central Lecture Theatre Building, Audimax 1. Admission is free. No registration is required.

About the lecture

Local public transport in Germany is on the cusp of change: meeting ambitious climate targets, addressing the shortage of driving staff, whilst increasing flexibility and availability. The DLR Institute of Transport Research demonstrates how the public transport system of the future can contribute to a sustainable, attractive transport system. For 25 years, the Berlin-based institute has been conducting research into mobility and developing concepts with solutions for the mobility of tomorrow. The lecture explores the role that intermodal integration, on-demand systems and automation can play in this context, and how, by weaving these concepts together, public transport can help realise sustainability targets and ensure mobility for everyone, particularly in rural areas.

Moderator: Denise Junker, German Aerospace Centre (DLR),
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The lecture is organised in collaboration with the German Aerospace Centre (DLR).
Further information on the DLR site in Cottbus can be found here.

Date: Wednesday, 4 November 2026, 5.30 pm to 7 pm
Venue: Audimax 1 on the BTU main campus, Konrad-Wachsmann-Allee 3, 03046 Cottbus

Dr Dominik Ziemke is Deputy Head of the ‘Design of Public Transport and Intermodal Services’ group at theDLR Institute of Transport Research. His research focuses on transport models and simulations. Previously, he headed the Mobility Modelling and Simulation research group at TU Dresden and was a research fellow at the chair of Transport Systems Planning at TU Berlin. He obtained his PhD from Hasselt University (Belgium) and the Technical University of Berlin on the topic of “Person-centric integrated modelling of transport and urban systems”, having previously studied Civil Engineering and transport planning at the University of Karlsruhe, the Georgia Institute of Technology (USA) and the Technical University of Berlin.

Dominik Ziemke is involved in the further development of the open-source traffic simulation environment MATSim and has, in particular, contributed to the extension enabling the simulation of cycle traffic. He currently leads the project “Further development of agent-based traffic models for active mobility” as part of the DFG Collaborative Research Centre AgiMo. He is a member of programme committees for various conferences on modelling and simulation and is actively involved in the German Society for Road and Transport Research, working to implement new simulation methods in practice.

About the Open BTU lecture series 

From 14 October 2026 to 27 January 2027, the public lecture series Open BTU will offer insights into fascinating fields of knowledge. During the winter semester, the following topics will be explored from various perspectives:

• Energy and mobility research for a sustainable future
• The financial system and the euro – from local authorities to central banks
• Researching with society – co-creative projects at the BTU 

Through this educational programme, which is open to all interested parties, the University’s Centre for Academic Continuing Education supports lifelong learning and promotes the transfer of knowledge and ideas within the region by addressing socially relevant issues. In doing so, BTU collaborates with other universities and institutions. After each lecture, there is an opportunity for questions and discussion with the speakers. Anyone interested is warmly invited to take part in the wide-ranging programme of events.

Find out more about the ‘Open BTU’ public lecture series:

https://www.b-tu.de/weiterbildung/offene-hochschule/open-btu