Author: Konstantinos Kaselouris
The World Road Association – PIARC implemented an ambitious PIARC Knowledge Exchange project, aiming at sharing knowledge about road safety, with the active contribution of NTUA and AIT, especially within Low and Middle Income Countries with limited resources but also in more developed economies with different needs and priorities. The theme of this month refers to behaviour, as presented by NTUA Professor George Yannis. Throughout the year, PIARC focuses on the Safe System approach, addressing safe roads and roadsides, safe road users, safe vehicles and safe speeds.
The NTUA Laboratory of Geodesy of the Department of Topography organized with great success the RobPos4VApp Workshop which was held as a hybrid event in Athens on 18 December 2023. The results presented concerned the research project “A methodological framework for low-cost cooperative DGNSS/INS-based robust positioning in safety critical connected vehicle applications” carried out within the Research Programme of the Hellenic Foundation for Research and Innovation (H.F.R.I.). NTUA actively contributed with the following presentation:
The Horizon 2020 research project PHOEBE has recently released the PHOEBE 2nd Newsletter, which provides information on the latest outcomes of the EU-funded ‘Predictive Approaches for Safer Urban Environment’ (PHOEBE) project aiming to increase the road safety of vulnerable road users, especially those who use active mobility and e-scooters. Special focus is given to the assessment of current transport pilot plans in Athens, carried out by NTUA.
The Australasian College of Road Safety (ACRS) in cooperation with Austroads are organizing the Australasian Road Safety Conference 2024 (ARSC), which will be held in Hobart, Tasmania, on 30 September – 3 October 2024. This conference titled “Target 2030. What’s the pathway forward?” will bring together road safety stakeholders and decision-makers from Australasia and international jurisdictions to facilitate collaboration and share information.
A paper titled “Exploring speeding behavior using naturalistic car driving data from smartphones ” authored by Armira Kontaxi, Dimosthenis-Marios Tzoutzoulis, Apostolos Ziakopoulos and George Yannis, has been published in Journal of Traffic and Transportation Engineering. The results from the interpretation of the estimated parameters of the models indicate that trip distance and mobile phone use while driving have been determined as statistically significant and positively correlated with the percentage of speeding time during a driver’s trip. In the same context, male drivers and drivers in the age group of 18–34 also increase the percentages of speeding instances while driving.
A paper titled “Examination of the Effect of Task Complexity and Coping Capacity on Driving Risk: A Cross-Country and Transportation Mode Comparative Study” authored by Stella Roussou, Thodoris Garefalakis, Eva Michelaraki, Christos Katrakazas, Muhammad Adnan, Muhammad Wissal Khattak, Tom Brijs and George Yannis, has been published in Sensors. The findings revealed a positive relationship between task complexity and coping capacity, indicating that as the difficulty of the driving task increased, the driver’s coping capacity also increased (i.e., higher ability to manage and adapt to the challenges posed by more complex tasks).
UNECE together with the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Republic of Moldova organized with great success a workshop titled “Policy dialogue and How to move forward road safety system”, which was held in Chisinau, Moldova, on 13-14 December 2023. The objectives of the workshop were the launch of a policy dialogue with national road safety stakeholders on the main Road Safety Performance Review (RSPR) findings in Moldova and the capacity-building of the stakeholders on the preparation of a road safety strategy. NTUA actively contributed with the following presentations:
The fifth Edition of the Global Status Report on Road safety 2023 (GSRRS) has been published by the World Health Organisation (WHO) in December 2023, with the active contribution of NTUA. The 2023 Edition of GSRRS contains a unique wealth of data and information on current status of road safety in the UN countries, highly useful for all types of road safety stakeholders globally. The GSRRS highlights the insufficient global progress as the number of annual road traffic deaths has reached 1.19 million. The GSRRS demonstrates that the price paid for mobility remains too high despite the fact that efforts to improve road safety are having an impact and that significant reductions in road traffic deaths can be made if proven measures are systematically applied.
The University of Thessaly, Department of Civil Engineering, Traffic, Transportation and Logistics Laboratory (TTLog), is organizing the 7th Conference on Sustainable Urban Mobility, which will take place in Plastira’s lake in Karditsa, on 4-6 September 2024. The theme of this year’s Conference is: “Climate Crisis and Resilient Transportation Systems” aiming at the dissemination of knowledge and the exchange of research and good practices among researchers and practitioners towards the adaptation of the transportation systems to climate change. Researchers can submit their abstracts until 16 January 2024.
The Transport and Roads division at Lund University is organizing the 26th Euro Working Group on Transportation Conference (EWGT 2024) which will be held on 4-6 September 2024 in Lund, Sweden. EWGT is a premier international forum for researchers, practitioners, and policymakers in the field of transportation and logistics. Researchers can submit their abstracts until 1 March 2024.
The World Road Association – PIARC implemented an ambitious PIARC Knowledge Exchange project, aiming at sharing knowledge about road safety, with the active contribution of NTUA and AIT, especially within Low and Middle Income Countries with limited resources but also in more developed economies with different needs and priorities. The theme of this month refers to road safety management, as presented by the head of Road Safety at the Transport Accident Commission of Australia Samantha Cockfield. Throughout the year, PIARC focuses on the Safe System approach, addressing safe roads and roadsides, safe road users, safe vehicles and safe speeds.
The Ministry of Transport, Communications and Works of the Republic of Cyprus organised with great success a workshop on Cyprus’ experience and recent developments in CEF projects on 11 December 2023, in Nicosia, Cyprus. In this workshop, the results on the Cypriot Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for road safety from the Baseline project, as well as the developments of the Trendline project were presented. NTUA actively contributed with the following presentation:
The International Transport Forum (ITF) has recently published a new Report titled “Using Safety Performance Indicators to Improve Road Safety – The case of Korea“ with the active contribution of NTUA. This Report explores how Safety Performance Indicators (SPIs) can play a critical role in implementing the Safe System approach to road safety. The example of Korea was examined. Developing safety performance indicators involves identifying and prioritising policy areas, selecting relevant indicators, continuously monitoring and evaluating progress, and aligning selected indicators with national road safety strategies.
In a recently published study conducted at Stanford University (USA), using a range of parameters for each scientist’s research contribution and influence, million scientists data from Scopus database were analysed. According to this study 971 Greek scientists are contained in the global top 2%, among which 130 researchers from the National Technical University of Athens (NTUA). 21 Professors from the School of Civil Engineering of NTUA are among the top 2% researchers in the world (5 within the top-ten of NTUA), while 6 of them from the Department of Transportation Planning and Engineering, (5 within the top-eleven of the School of Civil Engineering).
The Global Alliance of NGOs for Road Safety launched a strategic plan for the period 2024-2030 that sets out the vision, mission, and how these will be achieved during the remaining years of the Decade of Action 2021-2030. It has been developed with inputs from Alliance members, the Board, partners and key scientists. Through this strategic plan, 350-plus member NGOs in more than 100 countries will be empowered, mobilized and supported.
The World Health Organization has released a Road Safety Manual for decision-makers and practitioners concerning Speed Management. Speed has been identified as a major key risk factor in road traffic injuries, influencing both the risk of crash as well as the severity of the casualties. This second edition of the Speed Management Manual offers guidance to help decision makers and practitioners put in place the comprehensive set of laws, regulations and actions needed to save lives. Rooted in new case studies and evidence, including from low- and middle-income countries, it includes guidelines for safe speeds, ensuring safer mobility for all road users and actions to improve emergency responses to crashes.
The Saudi Traffic Safety Society organized under the patronage of His Royal Highness Governor of the Eastern Region the sixth International Traffic Safety Conference, which took place with great success in Dammam, Saudi Arabia on 4-6 December 2023. The theme of the conference was “Artificial intelligence and big data for transportation and traffic safety”. Experts, researchers, academics from internationally renowned research centers, institutions and international scientific organizations took part in this conference. NTUA actively contributed with the following presentation:
The Directorate General for Mobility and Transport (DG Move) of the European Commission released the Statistical Pocketbook 2022 “EU Transport in figures”. In this Statistical Pocketbook, key road safety Tables are contained, together with several other Tables on transport statistics, providing a complete picture of current trends in transport in Europe. Data on road fatalities for the EU member states and associate countries allow for time series comparisons and country rankings.
The European Commission adopted a series of proposals designed to improve the experience of passengers and travellers by strengthening their rights. These proposals focuse on stronger passenger rights, protection of package travellers, better multimodal travel information services and the creation of a common European mobility data space. The new rules will also provide for safer and smoother journeys, especially those involving different travel services or transport modes, ensuring that passengers have access to direct support, and enhanced real-time information, for example on delays and cancellations.
A paper titled “Parkinson’s Disease and Driving Fitness: A Systematic Review of the Existing Guidelines” authored by Petros Stamatelos, Alexandra Economou, George Yannis, Leonidas Stefanis and Sokratis G. Papageorgiou has been published in Movement Disorders. Results revealed that neurological aspects of driving fitness evaluation of PD patients are recognized in most of the guidelines. Furthermore, motor, neuropsychological, visual, and sleep assessment and medication review are key components for road safety.
A paper titled “Cycling under the influence of alcohol and other drugs: An exploratory analysis” authored by Zoi Christoforou, Maria Giannoulaki, Christos Gioldasis and George Yannis, has been published in Transportation Research Part F: Traffic Psychology and Behaviour. Results revealed that Cycling Under the Influence (CUI) of alcohol and other drugs is indeed a common practice among Parisian cyclists, although they declare to be aware of related risks, but rarely adapt their drinking/cycling behavior to avoid them, even when they have previous accident involvement record.
The World Road Association – PIARC implemented an ambitious PIARC Knowledge Exchange project, aiming at sharing knowledge about road safety, with the active contribution of NTUA and AIT, especially within Low and Middle Income Countries with limited resources but also in more developed economies with different needs and priorities. The theme of this month refers to tunnels, as presented by the chair of the PIARC Technical Committee 4.4 “Road Tunnels” Ingo Kaundinya. Throughout the year, PIARC focuses on the Safe System approach, addressing safe roads and roadsides, safe road users, safe vehicles and safe speeds.
An NTUA Diploma Thesis titled “Impact of compliance for the reduction of sulphur oxide emissions in the shipping industry” was recently presented by Maria Konti. In order to achieve this, two case studies based on data taken from two existing bulk carriers were presented. The study indicates that options i) and iii) are accompanied by significant capital expenditures (CapEx), while the Scrubber option is shown to be the most cost-effective considering 5 and 10-year depreciation scenarios. Other important parameters such as the vessels’ age, the management companies’ cash flow and risk appetite, and the hire rates are shown to influence the results.
An NTUA Diploma Thesis titled “Analysis of traffic behaviour and road safety of delivery riders” was recently presented by Konstantinos Choumis. To achieve this, a questionnaire was developed, and 200 food delivery drivers from all over Attica were asked to respond based on the stated preference method for various hypothetical scenarios involving changes in delivery time, crash risk reduction and profit loss per delivery. The results of the multinomial logistic regression model revealed that the variables influencing the food delivery drivers’ choices in hypothetical scenarios include: delivery time, crash risk reduction, profit loss, age of the driver, the number of fines received, and their opinion on stricter penalties as a measure to improve road safety.
An NTUA Diploma Thesis titled “Survey on acceptance of speed limit reduction on Greek motorways” was recently presented by Christina Agourou. A stated preference survey was carried out examining three different scenarios of speed limits’ reduction on motorways. Multinomial and binary logistic regression models were developed and results demonstrated that drivers acceptance of speed limit reduction in motorways increases as the number of fatalities and serious injuries increases. It was also revealed that females are more willing to comply with lower speed limits than males.
An NTUA Diploma Thesis titled “Impact factors of children’s road safety in Europe” was recently presented by Alexia Georgiou. For this purpose, data from the European CARE database on the number of victims aged 0-14 in road crashes and the characteristics of these crashes were used. Linear regression models and negative binomial regression models were developed. These models led to the conclusion that the percentage of drivers who develop speeds higher than the permitted ones in residential areas and the percentage of drivers who transport children over 150cm tall without a seat belt significantly affect the number of victims aged 0-14. Regarding crash characteristics, good weather conditions are associated with an increase in the number of victims.
An NTUA Diploma Thesis titled “Investigation of the impact of eco driving on fuel consumption using smartphone data” was recently presented by Aimilia Triantafyllou. To achieve this objective, data collected from 15 drivers who participated in a naturalistic driving experiment for a period of six months are analyzed. The results demonstrated that by improving the participants’ driving style, a remarkable reduction in fuel consumption was observed; and smoother and more ecological driver behavior was achieved.
An NTUA Diploma Thesis titled “Investigation of eco driving benefits at the rural network using driving simulator” was recently presented by Panagiota Kourenti. To achieve this objective, driving data from 39 participants were collected and the experimental procedure was carried out using a driving simulator. To complete the collection of the necessary data, the driving characteristics of the participants were collected through a questionnaire survey. The key conclusions of this thesis are that eco-driving reduces significantly emissions, fuel consumption and crash risk.
An NTUA Diploma Thesis titled “Comparative Evaluation of Road Safety Performance of the European Union Countries” was recently presented by Panagiotis Konstantopoulos. Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for road safety were exploited as collected in 2021-2022 within the Baseline project, together with data from Eurostat and EC CARE road crash databases. It was observed that an increase in the percentage of vehicles travelling within the speed limits on urban roads and of the percentage of seat belt use, as well as an increase in the proportion of new vehicles in the total fleet, are associated with a clear reduction in crash severity.
An NTUA Diploma Thesis titled “Comparative analysis of road safety performance in the Regions of Greece” was recently presented by Lydia Papagianni. For this purpose, Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for road safety in Greece were collected and calculated for the year 2022 as part of the European Union’s Baseline project. It was found that as the KPI for the use of protective equipment, distraction from handheld devices, compliance with speed limits, the per capita GDP, and the number of hospital beds increase, the number of road fatalities per population decreases. Conversely, as the employment rate increases, the road fatalities also increase.