EnCLOD OPEN DATA HACKATHON, DEBRECEN
On May 20-21, 2026, a one-and-a-half-day event took place, organized jointly by the Smart City division of DKV Zrt. and the DE Innovation Ecosystem Center, featuring a two-day idea competition. In the hackathon held as part of the EnCLOD project, 37 teams competed for a place in the finals and valuable prizes.
The motto of the competition: Focusing on the development of public transport and urban mobility in Debrecen.
The Participants
Local high school students, Hungarian and foreign students studying in the IT, engineering, health, life sciences, and economics programs at the University of Debrecen, as well as teams from the Eszterházy Károly University in Eger. The venue was provided by the Innovation Center of the University of Debrecen, which has hosted numerous successful hackathons.
The Task
To find solutions to one of three local mobility challenges, improving urban public transport with innovative ideas. For this, DKV Zrt. provided data from the traffic counting sensor network established during the EnCLOD project, as well as traffic and schedule data provided by the company, along with open data sources covering the entire city for the competitors, who were also assisted by expert mentors in solving the tasks.
The Challenges
- What is the relationship between vehicle traffic directed towards industrial parks and the utilization of public transport serving those areas?
- How well do the existing stops in the city meet the comfort, safety, and accessibility needs of waiting passengers?
- What traffic engineering interventions could encourage choosing public transport over individual car travel in Debrecen?
The Results
The number of applicants exceeded all our expectations, and the successful collaboration with the Innovation Ecosystem Center bore fruit. It is impressive how teams of a few members, coming from different backgrounds, can achieve solutions and results that could be adapted in other cities, using open data and artificial intelligence, in just over a day. It is particularly gratifying that we were able to announce not only winners but also a team with whom we will establish contact for further development of their ideas – summarized László Mátyus, our Director of Innovation and Service Development.
The six teams that reached the finals optimized night public transport to industrial parks, designed traffic light operations based on real traffic data, coordinated vehicle traffic with public transport to eliminate delays, planned a community participation-based application for the development of bus stops, and devised a city-level traffic model capable of predictions.
The Winning Teams
The hackathon was won by a team of students from the DE's engineering and IT programs, named Yet Another Effort to Enjoy Life, with the idea of modular and adaptable bus stops. "Bus stops are not just places for boarding and alighting from vehicles – they can contribute to inclusivity, social cohesion, and promote urban sustainability," stated Aboubakary Said Kimiro, Karel Gabriell Hasian Siahaan, Toby Purbojo, and Moses Kyeba Kandu about the winning project.
The jury awarded a special prize, in addition to the top three placements, for a passenger information system design visualizing the coordination of local and intercity routes to the team named The Strategists, composed of students from Medgyessy Ferenc High School, Art Vocational School, and Technical School: Anna Román-Szőllősi, Sára Nucz, and Dorina Elek.
The members of the winning teams were awarded a total of €1,500 in cash prizes, Campus Festival tickets, entry to scientific courses at the Agóra Science Experience Center, and nostalgic tram rides by the jury.
Summary
We concluded a competition that showcased solutions that can be implemented in real life and adapted by other cities. The innovative solutions born from the competition align with the goals of the EnCLOD project. The use of open data and data-driven decision-making can be excellently utilized in transportation and urban planning.