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What if a ferry could run quietly through the night, docking with millimetre precision, serving an island community without burning a drop of diesel? We sit down with Erik Froste, CEO of Swedish Road Ferries, to unpack how a state operator is turning that vision into daily reality—one vessel, one route, and one carefully tested software update at a time.

Erik takes us from the captain’s bridge to the control room, explaining why autonomy in maritime isn’t a novelty; it’s an answer to real problems: emissions, safety, and access. Sweden’s Vision 45 pairs electrification with digitalisation, then layers in automation and autonomy to reduce energy use, slash CO2, and make crossings safer than ever with auto-docking, automated mooring, and collision-avoidance systems. The human story shines through: extending 24/7 ferry service can keep elders on their islands, support caregivers at night, and preserve community life—all while navigating a growing shortage of skilled sailors.

We also dive into the operating model behind the technology. Modularity and digital twins ensure every vessel shares a common architecture, updates get validated ashore, and failures don’t cascade across the fleet. Training shifts from diesel engines to battery management systems, high-voltage safety, and data from thousands of sensors. Some captains move into remote operations centres; others lead on-water trials. Along the way, Sweden’s public ownership unlocks openness across Nordic and global partners, accelerating learning with Kongsberg, universities, and peers in Japan and Norway, and providing the evidence regulators need to approve new levels of autonomy.

If you’re curious about autonomous shipping, electric ferries, maritime safety technology, or how public–private collaboration accelerates climate-positive transport, this conversation offers a grounded blueprint. Subscribe, share with a colleague who cares about clean mobility, and leave a review with your biggest question about autonomous ferries—what would you want to see tested next?

The Autonomy Journals showcase leading voices, sharing insights, learnings, lessons and perhaps some confessions from the Autonomy Journey in transport and mobility.

Subscribe to the Autonomy Journals and join us next time as we continue exploring how Norway leads the way in autonomous mobility solutions. Because in Norway, we do it.

SAMS is a private, non-profit innovation cluster for sustainable, autonomous mobility solutions and the host of the podcast.

https://www.sams-norway.no/