The European Commission with the active contribution of NTUA, SWOV and KFV has published at the European Road Safety Observatory, the Powered Two-Wheelers Facts and Figures Report which looks at fatalities at motorcycle and moped riders’ fatalities on EU roads. According to this Report, respectively, 2% and 17% of all road fatalities in the EU in 2023 were moped riders and motorcyclists. Taken together therefore, almost one in five road fatalities were powered two wheeler riders. Moreover, in fatal moped and motorcycle crashes, often no other road user was involved as 31% and 36% of moped riders and motorcyclists in 2023 respectively died in a single vehicle crash (i.e. a crash with no crash opponent).  

The European Commission with the active contribution of NTUA, SWOV and KFV has published at the European Road Safety Observatory, the Pedestrians Facts and Figures Report which looks at pedestrian fatalities on European roads. According to this Report, in 2023 almost one in five of all road fatalities across the EU were pedestrians. The absolute number of pedestrian fatalities fell from 5,285 to 3,690 between 2013 and 2023 (-30%), which is a greater decrease compared to the decrease for the total number of road fatalities (-16%). Furthermore, around 1 in 2 pedestrian fatalities (51%) in 2023 were seniors aged 65 or older.  

The European Commission with the active contribution of NTUA, SWOV and KFV has published at the European Road Safety Observatory, the New Forms of Mobility Facts and Figures Report which looks at fatalities of users of motorized micro-mobility devices and pedelecs on European roads. According to this Report, in 2023, 112 motorised micro-mobility device fatalities and 312 pedelec (regular pedelecs as opposed to speed pedelecs) fatalities were recorded in the 17 European countries reporting data on these transport modes.  Furthermore, the share of fatalities on motorized micro-mobility devices on urban roads, in crashes where several transport modes are involved, amounts to 70% in 2023, while fatalities on pedelecs are lower with a share of 49% on urban roads. Moreover, 86% of reported fatalities on motorised micro-mobility devices were male, whereas for pedelec fatalities this share is slightly lower amounting to 77%, in 2023.   

The European Commission with the active contribution of NTUA, SWOV and KFV has published at the European Road Safety Observatory, the Cyclists Facts and Figures Report which refers to cyclist fatalities on EU roads. According to this Report, in contrast to the number of fatalities in crashes with other modes of transport, the number of cyclists killed on EU roads has remained at more or less the same level for the past decade: since 2013 an increase of 1% and since 2019 a decrease of -4%. In 2023, half of all cyclist fatalities (50%) were cyclists aged 65 years or older on average and more than half of cyclist fatalities occurred in crashes on urban roads (56%), 43% on rural roads and 1% on motorways. In 2023, 33% of cyclist fatalities occurred at junctions which is twice as high as for other road fatalities (17%).   

The NTUA Road Safety Observatory won the Excellence in Road Safety Award of the European Commission – People’s Choice – on 16 October 2025 in Brussels, in recognition for the great impact of the NRSO Campaign promoting 30km/h city-wide speed limits as the key policy for safer, healthier and greener cities. NTUA Prof. George Yannis mentioned that “Robust scientific evidence demonstrates that slower traffic can save thousands of lives in Europe, especially those of pedestrians, cyclists and motorcyclists and at NTUA we are excited to contribute with all our efforts and with our 30 Marathons campaign and see more and more cities and countries in Europe adopting the 30km/h city-wide speed limits“.   

The EU Road Safety Exchange Project of the European Commission and the European Parliament drives adoption of proven road safety measures across Europe with the active contribution of NTUA. The EU-funded Project connected road safety experts from 19 European countries to tackle specific road safety challenges, showcase European best practice and implement practical solutions to save lives on their roads. From safer roads in Lithuania to lower speed limits in Greece, the European knowledge-sharing initiative is helping governments turn successful road safety ideas into action, making faster progress toward the EU’s goal of halving road deaths and serious injuries by 2030. 

The Hellenic Institute of Transport (HIT/CERTH) in cooperation with the Hellenic Institute of Transportation Engineers (HITE) organized with great success the 12th International Congress on Transportation Research (ICTR 2025), which took place on 16-18 October 2025 in Thessaloniki, Greece. The spotlight theme of the 2025 Congress was “Transportation in the era of Artificial Intelligence“.  NTUA actively contributed with the following papers and presentations:

• A Review of Legal Considerations and Liability Allocation in Connected and Automated Vehicles
• Evaluating the Impact of Driving Competitions on Driver Behavior and Safety
• Driver Profiling through Incentive-Based Cluster Analysis in a Naturalistic Driving Study
• A deep and machine learning approach to detect crash risk based on smartphone sensors and in-vehicle cameras
• Quantifying the relationship between task complexity and coping capacity on crash risk: A structural equation modelling approach
• Predicting Pedestrian Violations in Urban Intersections Using ANOVA and Poisson Regression (Young Researcher Best Road Safety Paper Award)
• Physical and psychological long-term consequences of serious traffic injuries: The IMPROVA Project
• Identifying Dangerous Street Segments and Analyzing Traffic Behavior in Athens Using Telematics, Crash Records, and TomTom Traffic Data
• Aggregating Telematics Data for Road Safety Analysis
• Road segmentation made simple: a practical comparison of segmentation models and post-processing techniques
• Optimizing Driving Behavior for Sustainable Mobility: A Systematic Literature Review
• Exploring Safe and Eco Driving Behavior through Large-scale Data using Unsupervised Learning
• A social Cost-Benefit Analysis for the provision of financial incentives and benefits for vehicle insurance policies using telematics
• Mapping Risk: Leveraging Telematics and Machine Learning to Analyze Crash Risks at Urban Intersections
• Risky Behaviours and Safety Perception of Moped Riders and Motorcyclists Globally
• Advancing Sustainable Urban Mobility: A Model-Based Analysis of a Proposed Mobility Card System in Athens and User Acceptance
• Athenian’s Preferences toward Public Space Redistribution
• Evaluating the Impact of Speed Limit Reductions on Greek Motorways: A Cost-Benefit and Acceptance Analysis
• Effects of Fatigue on Driver Behavior in Urban and Highway Environments Using a Driving Simulator
• Alcohol-Impaired Driving: Evaluating Its Impact on Urban Safety and Driver Behavior through Driving Simulator
• Eco-Driving Effectiveness in Reducing Emissions and Crashes in Rural Areas
• Exploring the impact of fuel price on driver harsh behaviour in Greece
• Evaluation of Hybrid Machine Learning Models for Risky Driving Behavior Classification: A Comparative Study Using RNN-AdaBoost, GANs, and XGBoost
• Critical Factors of Safe Micromobility in Greece
• Road Crashes Analysis in Greek Islands

The Council of Ministers of the International Transport Forum (ITF) recently adopted the Policy Recommendation on Comprehensive Road Safety, emphasizing on evidence-based policymaking, improved crash data systems, and risk-based prioritization of interventions where the greatest number of lives can be saved. This Recommendation further calls for safe speed management, stronger compliance and education measures and the accelerated deployment of vehicle safety technologies. ITF also encourages corporate engagement through a Global Road Safety Assessment Framework and highlights the importance of cross-government coordination to achieve lasting safety outcomes and progress toward Vision Zero.  

The European Transport Safety Council (ETSC) organized with great success its bi-annual Main Council Meeting which was held in Brussels, Belgium on October 15, 2025, where all the latest road safety developments and policies in Europe were discussed. NTUA actively contributed with the following presentation:

• The New Greek Road Traffic Code

The University of Twente is organizing the International Conference on Smart Cycling 2026 followed by the NECTAR Workshop, which will take place in Enschede, Netherlands on 25-26 March 2026. The Conference will bring together cycling and ITS professionals, policymakers, companies, and researchers from across Europe. Through plenary and parallel sessions, it will explore how smart technologies and cycling data can contribute to safer, more sustainable, and more attractive cycling cities. 

The European Transport Research Review (ETRR), a leading journal associated with the European Conference of Transport Research Institutes (ECTRI) has launched a new Thematic Collection, titled “Shaping Safer Behaviour: Evidence-Based Approaches in Transport Safety Research”. This Thematic Collection focuses on behavioural research in transport safety, highlighting evidence-based approaches to measure, model, and influence road user behaviour as a means to improve safety in evolving urban and technological contexts. It will bring together contributions that apply advanced tools such as Virtual Reality, Machine Learning, behavioural modelling, and simulation to real-world challenges, including the protection of vulnerable road users, the impacts of urban transformation projects, and the monitoring of safety progress through Key Performance Indicators (KPIs). Overall, this timely and impactful collection aims to spotlight innovative, data-driven strategies that promote safer mobility across Europe and beyond. Submissions are open until 31 March 2026.  

The Conference of European Directors of Roads (CEDR) together with the European Union Road Federation (ERF) organized with great success the “Work Zone Safety Symposium“, which was held in Brussels, Belgium on 2-3 February 2026. This Event gathered senior leaders, policymakers, industry and automotive representatives to advance the safety of Europe’s work zones. The Symposium fostered dialogue and delivered practical insights on how to protect workers and road users alike.  

The Economist Impact organized with great success the 9th Sustainability Summit for SE Europe & the Mediterranean, which took place in Athens, Greece on 13-14 October 2025. This Event was held under the theme “Seeking a new balance amidst a derailed green transition” and focused on climate action,  clean technologies, environmental protections and climate policies.   NTUA actively contributed with the following presentation:

• Sustainable Transport for Equity and Growth

The United States Department of Transportation, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and Transport Canada in cooperation with participating ESV member countries are organizing the 28th International Technical Conference on The Enhanced Safety of Vehicles (ESV) which will take place in Toronto, Canada, on 12-15 May 2026. The conference will be held under the theme “Advancing Innovation: Technologies for Safer Vehicles”. 

The Transport and Mobility Laboratory of EPFL is offering an advance course on Discrete Choice Analysis: Predicting Individual Behavior and Market Demand, which will take place in Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Switzerland, on 25-29 January 2026. This one-week Program will be delivered by Prof. Moshe Ben-Akiva and Prof. Michel Bierlaire, undertaking an in-depth study of discrete choice models and their applications. This Course is designed for professionals (from industry and public authorities) and academic researchers (professors, researchers, PhD students), interested in understanding and predicting consumer choices, demand and market share, such as marketing analysts, managers, planners, economists, engineers, operations researchers. Registration is open until 23 January 2026. 

The International Road Traffic Safety Analysis and Data (IRTAD) Group and the International Transport Forum (ITF) organized with great success the 40th Meeting which took place in Paris, France, on 1-2 October 2025. In this meeting, the latest international road safety developments were discussed. Members and observers from many countries enriched the discussion aimed to improve road safety across the globe. Particular emphasis was given to road safety data collection and analysis. NTUA actively contributed with the following presentations:

• TRENDLINE project: Speed and speeding behaviour in Europe
• Infrastructure use & safety feeling of different road user types globally results from the ESRA 3 project

NTUA organized with great success the “Researcher’s Night” science fair, which took place in Athens, Greece on 26 September 2025. The IVORY project was showcased in this Event, presenting its overall research goals and activities to young students from primary and secondary schools, as well as fellow NTUA and Athens university researchers and faculty. In parallel, the NTUA IVORY DCs had the opportunity to engage with visitors and present their individual doctoral research progress, with several contributions    :

• Julia Porto – Proactive risk mapping and infrastructure safety management
• Aristotelis Tsoutsanis – Data fusion of traffic, behaviour & infrastructure for holistic driver assistance
• Simone Paradiso – AI for road safety monitoring and crash prediction from micro- to macro levels
• Aristotelis Styanidis – Road safety prediction on the basis of ethically sound physiological measurements

The European Association for Injury Prevention and Safety Promotion (EuroSafe) in cooperation with the Hellenic Mediterranean University (HMU) and LaHeRS organized with great success the EU Safety 2025 Conference which took place in Heraklion, Greece on 1-2 October 2025. This conference aimed to strengthen the field of injury prevention and safety promotion in Europe by facilitating the exchange of scientific knowledge and enabling networking opportunities for researchers, safety organisations and academics.  NTUA actively contributed with the following papers and presentations:

•   Leveraging Smartphone Telematics for Urban Traffic Safety: A Data-Driven Analysis of Unsafe Driving Events and Crash Risk
•   Machine Learning-Based Categorization of Central Roads in Athens Using Crash Risk Analysis
•  Current State of Road Safety in Greece: Existing Deficiencies and Urgently Needed Interventions

SAFER Vehicle in cooperation with Chalmers University of Technology, Université Gustave Eiffel and University of New South Wales Sydney are organizing the 10th International Conference on Driver Distraction and Inattention (DDI2026), which will be held in Gothenburg, Sweden on 20-22 October 2026. This Conference is the primary international event on this topic, attracting delegates from more than 20 countries. It is designed to bring participants – from academia, industry and government – up-to-date on the developments and trends in the field of inattention and distraction in driving. Researchers can submit their abstracts until 15 March 2026. 

The WHO Mortality Database was updated in February 2025, incorporating the latest mortality and population data reported by Member States. It is a comprehensive compilation of mortality data reported annually through civil registration and vital statistics systems. The database is the leading global source for comparative epidemiological studies of mortality by cause and provides access to cause-of-death data from 1950 to the present. It is accompanied by a visualization portal that enhances accessibility, impact and relevance by allowing users to explore and export data in multiple formats. The mortality data are organized according to revisions of the International Classification of Diseases (ICD), with detailed data available from ICD-7, ICD-8, ICD-9, and ICD-10. For the purposes of road safety research, the database provides information on the number of deaths due to road traffic crashes, the road fatality rate per 100,000 population, and the percentage of road traffic crash deaths out of total deaths, enabling robust monitoring and analysis of this major public health issue.  

NTUA organized with great success a Workshop on presenting the results of the NTUA Basic Research Programme , which took place in Athens on 30 September 2025. This Event aimed to strengthen and promote new research and make better use of existing research potential in areas of basic research at NTUA.  The NTUA Department of Transportation Planning and Engineering  contributed actively with the following presentation:

• Exploring the relationship between unsafe traffic events and crash occurrence

The European Association of Operators of Toll Road Infrastructures (ASECAP) in cooperation with AISCAT organized with great success the 4th ASECAP Sustainability Forum which will be held in Rome, Italy on 15 December 2025. This year’s discussions addressed key issues, including: sustainability reporting and climate risk management, building resilient and carbon-free road infrastructure and innovation and circular economy in the toll road sector.  

The European Commission with the active contribution of NTUA, SWOV and KFV has published at the European Road Safety Observatory, the Children Facts and Figures Report which looks at road fatalities among children on EU roads. According to this Report, the absolute number of fatalities among children aged 0-14 decreased between 2013 and 2023 by 28% to 429 fatalities in 2023, while the short-term change from 2019 to 2023 is a decline of 12%. The relative share remained constant throughout this time at just over 2% of all EU fatalities.  

NTUA Professor George Yannis has given an invited lecture at the Faculty of Transport Engineering of Vilnius Tech on “Artificial Intelligence in Road Safety and Mobility” on September 12th 2025. The Lecture focused on recent advancements and practical applications of artificial intelligence in enhancing road safety and mobility and also explored how AI-driven solutions can be tailored to meet diverse and evolving transportation needs.  

The 2025 International Research Council on the Biomechanics of Injury (IRCOBI) Europe Conference was held with great success in Vilnius, Lithuania, on 10-12 September 2025. The IRCOBI Conference focused on the avoidance and reduction of injuries related to road-traffic collisions, with particular emphasis on advanced safety technologies. The safety aspects of automated driving and the influence of vehicle and equipment design on injury outcomes were also discussed.  NTUA actively contributed with the following papers:

• •   Predicting pedestrian illegal crossing using vehicle dynamics with LightGBM
  •   Analyzing Hard Braking events of Automated Shuttles from Naturalistic Urban Pilot Sites

The NTUA Road Safety Observatory (www.nrso.ntua.gr) achieved its 20 years of continuous efforts towards scientific evidence in decision making for safer roads everywhere and for all. The nrso scientific team with high dedication, efficiency and expertise continues to grow and excel, with a rich and high quality scientific output of more than 1,000 road safety scientific Papers published (280+ in peer reviewed journals), hundreds of scientific Reports, 750+ presentations in scientific conferences, almost 200 Diploma Theses and 20 PhD dissertations. Over the past two decades, the NRSO portal has steadily expanded its contents, reach, visibility and impact, containing today more than 2.500 road safety items (25+ items per month), attracting over 100,000 pageviews annually, through its wide network of hundreds of Authorities, Research, Industry and Society partners worldwide and the 157 newsletters so far, reaching monthly more than 7.500 road safety experts worldwide. With great thanks to the NRSO dedicated scientists and all our great partners, the exciting journey towards scientific excellence continues … 

The International Road Federation (IRF) released the 62nd edition of the IRF World Road Statistics 2025 (WRS2025), with data open to all for free through the IRF WRS Data Warehouse platform, thanks to the generous support of the TotalEnergies Foundation and Michelin Corporate Foundation. The IRF WRS 2025 continues to be the major comprehensive, universal source of statistical data on road networks, traffic and inland transport, including traffic crashes. This year the WRS 2025 includes the latest data covering years 2018 to 2023, with the active contribution of NTUA for the Greek data. It includes over 200 road and transport-sector related indicators across 11 sections, covering more than 200 countries and territories. 

A paper titled Advancing traffic microsimulation: a systematic review of parameter selection for connected and autonomous vehicles authored by Maria G. Oikonomou, Apostolos Ziakopoulos and George Yannis has been published in Journal of Simulation. This paper presents a systematic review of 54 studies to consolidate key parameters for modelling Autonomous Vehicles and Connected and Autonomous Vehicles in traffic microscopic simulations. The integration of CAV is anticipated to transform transportation by enhancing traffic flow, safety and system efficiency. By comparing them to those used for human-driven vehicles, valuable insights are provided, including statistical summaries and boxplots, to inform the enhancement of simulation models. The findings provide a resource for researchers, supporting direct integration and refinement of AV/CAV parameters to improve the accuracy and reliability of future traffic simulations. 

ERTICO is organizing the 17th ITS European Congress which will be held, in Istanbul on 27-29 April 2026 under the theme “Bridging Innovation: Integrated, safe and seamless mobility”. Over the years, the European Congresses have offered a platform for thought leaders, developers, entrepreneurs and decision makers from the transport, logistics and IT industries to share ideas and progress smart and sustainable mobility. Programme can be found here.  

The Horizon Europe research project IMPROVA has recently released its 2nd Newsletter, focusing on enhancing road safety by addressing the complexities of long-term consequences (LTC) caused by road traffic crashes. In its first year, IMPROVA has made significant strides in understanding and assessing the LTC of road traffic crashes. These actions align with our core research questions and lay the foundation for innovative tools, methodologies and policy recommendations.