We sit down with Oliver Nahon, Director of Operations of SAAM, to talk about the project, their role in CHORUS, and the impact they hope the project will have for European Citizens.
1. Can you introduce your organisation?
Can you tell us about your organisation, its mission, and the expertise it brings to CHORUS?
The Swiss Association for Autonomous Mobility (SAAM) is Switzerland’s national platform for Connected, Cooperative and Automated Mobility (CCAM). We unite public authorities, cantons, transport operators, industry and research, and we make things happen between them: organising national and international events, supporting regulators as the rules for automated vehicles (AVs) take shape, and bringing the right members together to get projects off the ground. That convening role is exactly what we bring to CHORUS.
2. Why did your organisation join CHORUS?
What motivated SAAM to join the consortium, and what is its role within the project?
Switzerland runs some of Europe’s most advanced CCAM pilots, and CHORUS lets us connect that experience with the rest of Europe. Within the project, SAAM contributes to the requirements and use-case work in WP1 and supports the Swiss demonstrations, but our main role sits in WP5: training and capacity building, policy dialogues with authorities, and recommendations on standardisation and regulation.
3. Which CHORUS outcome are you most excited about?
Is there a particular tool, pilot, methodology, or result that you’re especially looking forward to, and why?
The replication and scaling handbook, together with the policy dialogues that feed into it. Most CCAM pilots stall when they try to become permanent services, and the reasons are usually regulatory or organisational rather than technical. A practical, evidence-based guide drawn from seven demonstration sites is the single most useful thing CHORUS can put in the hands of our members and of Swiss authorities.
4. What impact do you hope CHORUS will have on citizens?
Which aspects of the project do you think will make the biggest difference in people’s everyday lives?
For citizens, the value lies in the service, not the technology. CHORUS treats AVs as one part of a wider network alongside public transport, cycling and shared mobility, so people gain door-to-door options in places and at times that are poorly served today. Done well, that means better access for older people and those with reduced mobility, and safer, less congested streets.
5. Is there anything else you’d like to share?
What should readers expect about CHORUS?
CHORUS runs alongside our involvement in ULTIMO and our ongoing work with Swiss authorities on the regulatory framework for AV operation, so lessons from the project feed directly into national practice. We are glad to hear from cities, transport operators and technology providers who would like to compare notes — the Swiss ecosystem is small enough to move quickly and open to collaboration.
