2026 Ardèche Economy Awards: Acorel takes first place in the ‘Technology and Expertise’ category

Founded in 1989 in Saint-Péray, Acorel is now run by the second generation. For over thirty years, we have been designing, assembling and testing our equipment in the Ardèche. Our speciality is automatic passenger counting in public transport and, more broadly, people flow management.
This local roots are at the heart of our identity. Some of our staff have been working at Acorel for over 20 or 30 years. Their expertise is reflected in every one of our sensors.

In his pitch, Dimitri Rudenko presented the company’s key figures:

• staff: a team based entirely in Saint-Péray.
• Approximately €10 million in turnover: 30 per cent of which comes from exports.
• 20 per cent of turnover reinvested in R&D: every year, to drive continuous innovation.
• An international presence: subsidiaries in London and Australia.
• More than 20,000 vehicles fitted with the company’s systems: worldwide.

Our passenger counting solutions are currently in use on transport networks and in public venues, both in France and abroad.

Buses and coaches
Over 1,000 buses in Lyon, Marseille and Lille, as well as the entire fleet in Brussels.

Trains and trams
Over 800 SNCF regional trains, the trams in Sydney and Los Angeles, as well as those in Rio, fitted out for the Olympic Games.

Airports and retail outlets
Queue management systems at Paris-CDG, Nantes, Mulhouse and Marseille airports, and 350 Orange shops. Discover our areas of expertise and our client projects.

The challenge facing public transport: carrying the right number of passengers, at the right time, using the right resources. Thanks to our solutions, operators can monitor passenger numbers on every bus, train or car in real time.
This enables them to adjust timetables and frequencies to match demand as closely as possible. They can even inform passengers of occupancy levels directly on the platforms, as is done in Dubai. Acorel’s Vision Software Suite centralises this passenger count data to enable unified management of passenger flows.

In a market dominated by major international groups, Acorel has chosen to focus on innovation and building close relationships with its customers. With 20 per cent of its turnover reinvested in R&D each year and 30 per cent of its business coming from exports, our Ardèche-based SME is holding its own against the global giants in the sector.

We dedicate this award to our teams, who design, assemble and test our equipment here in the Ardèche – some of whom have been with us for over 20 or 30 years.
Thank you to the organisers of the Ardèche Economy Awards, the judging panel, our customers, our partners and the entire Acorel team, with a special thought for Sylvain Berry, who is here with us today.
In short, this first-place win in the ‘Technology and Expertise’ category recognises more than thirty years of expertise in automatic passenger counting, developed in the Ardèche and deployed worldwide.
Next time you board a train, take a look above the door…