Have you ever sat on a train and wondered how all these tons of steel are moved safely across the tracks or who actually makes sure your train ends up at the correct station? If so, you've come to the right talk!

The German railway system is a fascinating mix of traditional infrastructure, safety-critical logic and increasingly modern systems.
This talk introduces the basics behind it all, from tracks, switches, signals and balises to interlocking systems, train protection and railway communication.
We will look at how safety is built into the systems, why trains do not need speeding tickets, what GSM is still doing in modern rail operations and which protocols may appear when railway technology meets the network stack.

The goal of this talk is to make the hidden systems behind everyday train travel visible and to get the community interested in exploring railway technology.