Ministry of Transport – My friend the Βicycleman – 2014

A book titled ‘My friend the Βicycleman‘ has recently been published by the Ministry of Infrastructure, Transport and Networks as a tool to improve children’s education on road safety and prepare the future drivers. The book aims to help children understand and apply the basic rules of safe and responsible driving during riding their bike in a simple and fun way. pdf5

October 19th, 2014|Categories: News|Tags: , |

ITF – Towards Zero Road Deaths 2014

Reducing road fatalities and serious injuries by helping governments to implement a “safe system” approach in road safety is the objective of a new ITF Working Group launched on October 1st, 2014 in Paris. The “Working Group on the Implementation of a Safe System Approach” will develop actionable policy guidance for countries who aim to improve their road safety performance and in the long run eliminate road traffic as a cause of death or serious injuries. The group’s work programme will build on a previous ITF report, “Towards Zero: Ambitious Road Safety Targets and the Safe Systems Approach“, published in 2008. The working group comprises 28 road safety experts from 23 countries (including Prof. George Yannis from Greece), the World Health Organisation, the World Bank, the International Road Assessment Programme (iRAP), the Global New Car Assessment Programme (Global NCAP) and the FIA Foundation. 

October 10th, 2014|Categories: News|

NTUA – Announcement for PhD positions 2014

The Department of Transportation Planning and Engineering of the School of Civil Engineering of the National Technical University of Athens invites PhD candidates in the field of road safety. Announcement in Greek pdf5 and in English pdf5.
These PhDs will be financed by European research projects with indicative subjects:
1. Integrated multi-level analysis of international road safety data
2. Advanced analysis of road infrastructure safety interventions effectiveness
3. Exploitation of big data to correlate driver behavior with traffic risk
The deadline for application is 30th October 2014.  
October 6th, 2014|Categories: News|

Workshop on Road Safety and Road Accidents – Kalamata 2014

A Workshop titled “Road Safety – Road Accidents” organized by the Police Department of Kalamata took place on September 17th, at the Cultural Center of Kalamata, within the framework of the European Mobility Week (16-22 September 2014). This event aimed to increase road safety awareness of the local communities given that road accident causes are known and can be prevented. More than 150 people attended the Workshop including local and regional representatives, police officials and other road safety stakeholders.

Panagiotis Papantoniou, NTUA research engineer and PhD Candidate presented key policies and specific measures to reduce road accidents at the Messinia Region.  ppt5

September 18th, 2014|Categories: News|

IOAS Campaign – Enjoy visiting Greece. Stay Safe on the road! 2014

A campaign on Road Safety for Greek and foreign drivers travelling in Greece is organised by the Road Safety Institute ‘Panos Mylonas’ and the Representation of the European Commission in Greece. The campaign consists of a leaflet – in Greek and English – with road safety tips for motorists, aiming to raise drivers’ awareness, especially during summertime. Moreover, a poster, tv and radio spots were created to highlight the right use of belt, helmet and mobile phone while driving as well as responsible drinking and speed limits.

July 29th, 2014|Categories: News|Tags: |

Professor George Kanellaidis awarded by the President of the Republic

NTUA Emeritus Professor George Kanellaidis has been recently awarded by the President of the Hellenic Republic, the Golden Cross of the Order of Merit for his contribution to the Strategic Plan for Road Safety in Greece. 

Emeritus Professor George Kanellaidis has been involved in all areas of highways engineering and road safety for more than 40 years through numerous research projects, engineering studies in Greece and abroad and he is the author of a great number of published scientific papers, cited widely worldwide. Road safety strategic planning in Greece has been one of his key scientific areas over the last decades.

July 25th, 2014|Categories: News|

ETSC – Competition for best practice in work-related road safety 2014

As part of the PRAISE project, the European Transport Safety Council (ETSC) presents annual awards in recognition of organisations that have made an outstanding commitment to improving work-related road safety. The competition aims to spur on employers throughout the EU to tackle road safety at work and it is divided into three separate categories according to the size and type of the applicant organisations: SME (Small-Medium Enterprise), Large Company and Public Authority. The winners will be chosen by an independent panel of experts appointed by ETSC. Theapplication deadline is early September and the ‘PRAISE Award’ will be presented on the 13th of October 2014 at the PRAISE Annual Conference

July 21st, 2014|Categories: News|Tags: |

Professor John Golias is the new Rector of NTUA 2014

Professor John Golias was recently elected as the new Rector of the National Technical University of Athens, heading nine Engineering Schools, more than 500 faculty members, 12.000 students and 4.000 researchers. It is the first time that a Transportation Engineer is elected as NTUA Rector.

Professor John Golias is the Director of Traffic Engineering Laboratory of NTUA and Dean of the School of Civil Engineering. He has been involved in all areas of transportation planning and engineering sector for more than 35 years through numerous research projects, engineering studies and committees in Greece and abroad and he is the author of a great number of published scientific papers, cited widely worldwide. He served also as Secretary General of the Ministry of Transport during the Athens 2004 Olympic Games and Chairman of the Hellenic Institute of Transportation Engineers. Road accident analysis and road safety policy are among his key scientific areas. pdf5

July 11th, 2014|Categories: News|

European Commission – Smartphone app for EU road traffic rules 2014

The new smartphone application ‘Going Abroad’ is now available after an initiative of the European Commission. This app provides information on EU road traffic rules and is available for iPhone and iPad, Google Android and Microsoft Windows phones in 22 languages. Apart from all important road safety information for all EU countries, the app also contains a road safety quiz and a memory game to entertain passengers during long car journeys. Of course the app should never be checked while driving; drivers should let the passengers do the job or take breaks from driving to stay both rested and well-informed. 

June 26th, 2014|Categories: News|

Professor Matthew Karlaftis 1969-2014

NTUA Professor Matthew Karlaftis passed away on 4 June 2014. NTUA and the global scientific community lost an eminent scientist and a bright personality, with significant contribution to transportation planning and engineering in Greece and worldwide. Prof. M.Karlaftis contributed and guided several research projects and engineering studies and published numerous papers in scientific journals and conference proceedings, cited intensively worldwide. Editor-in-Chief of Transportation Research Part C and Board Member of several other Journals, he received several scientific awards. He served also as Chairman of the Hellenic Institute of Transportation Engineers. Transportation statistical modeling was his passion, with great contributions on road accident analysis.

Prof. M.Karlaftis will always be the bright example for the Department of Transportation Planning and Engineering of the National Technical University of Athens.

June 11th, 2014|Categories: News|

Greek Road Safety Inter-Ministry Committee 2014

According to the Prime Minister Decision nr. 1245/15-5-2014, the Greek Road Safety Inter-Ministry Committee is re-established.  Under the new structure, the Inter-Ministry Committee is chaired by the Prime Minister, assisted by a Support Committee chaired by the Deputy Minister for Infrastructure, Transport and Networks and the respective Secretariat.  pdf5

In parallel, the new National Road Safety Council has also been re-established, comprising representatives from all decision makers and stakeholders involved, as well as key road safety experts. pdf5

June 4th, 2014|Categories: News|

European Commission Road Safety videos 2014

A new link is now available in the European Commission Road safety webpage, containing road safety actions’ videos from all over Europe. The purpose of this link is to inform the users and the stakeholders on actions that take place in Europe concerning road safety and to encourage them for further actions promoting road safety in Europe. 

May 16th, 2014|Categories: News|

Dacota paper awarded best poster presentation at TRA 2014

A paper based on the results of the DaCoTA research project has been awarded the best poster of scientific paper award of the Transport Research Arena Conference.  This paper was presented by NTUA Associate Professor George Yannis and concerned the “Development of the European Road Safety Knowledge System“, published at the Proceedings of the Transport Research Arena Conference, Paris, April 2014. The objective of this paper was the presentation of the integrated and comprehensive European Road Safety Knowledge System, which was developed within the DaCoTA research project of the 7th Framework Programme of the European Commission. pdf5ppt5

April 23rd, 2014|Categories: News|

European Commission for safer roads in Europe 2010-2014

The strategic target of the European Commission is to halve road deaths between 2010 and 2020 and also to start focusing EU efforts on reducing serious road traffic injuries. Between 2001 and 2010, the number of fatalities on EU roads was reduced by a total of 43%. However, to achieve the goal, determined and joined-up action is needed from many actors at EU, national and local level. 

At EU level, actions in recent years include the following 10 highlights:

April 8th, 2014|Categories: News|

European Parliament – New rules for technical testing of vehicles 2014

The European Parliament adopted with a clear majority the roadworthiness package, a set of measures to toughen up vehicle checks and to widen their scope. The three directives that constitute the roadworthiness package concern periodic roadworthiness tests, technical roadside inspections for commercial vehicles and vehicle registration documents. The new directives replace existing EU rules setting minimum standards for vehicle checks that date back to 1977, with only minor updates. These new rules aim to avoid more than 36,000 accidents a year linked to technical failure. 

March 21st, 2014|Categories: News|

IOAS – Courtesy on the road campaign – 2014

The Road Safety Institute (R.S.I.) “Panos Mylonas” and the Hellenic Institute of Transportation Engineers (H.I.T.E.) co-organize for the seventh consecutive year the Panhellenic Nationwide Road Safety Week with many activities throughout the country. This year the events will take place under the auspices of the Greek Presidency of the Council of the European Union and the Ministry of Infrastructure, Transport and Networks. Several activities will take place, including the :
– European Day of Courtesy on the Road (March 22nd) campaign on motorways and on the radio. 
– Debate co-organised with the European Transport Safety Council (ETSC) on Road Safety Performance Index, titled “Greece’s Road Safety in a European context” (March 19th) 
March 17th, 2014|Categories: News|Tags: |

NTUA Civil Engineering School ranked 28th worldwide 2014

The Civil Engineering School of the National Technical University of Athens was ranked 28th among all Civil Engineering Schools worldwide and 7th in Europe. This ranking is produced by the QS Organisation based on the following criteria: Research, Teaching, Employability, Facilities, Internationalization, Innovation, Engagement and Access.  NTUA road safety activities have contributed to this ranking. 

 

March 11th, 2014|Categories: News|

RIDERSCAN’s new survey on Intelligent Transport Systems and Motorcycling Safety 2014

The RIDERSCAN project is a EU co-funded project, coordinated by the Federation of European Motorcyclists’ Associations (FEMA), aiming to gather existing information on motorcycle safety in Europe, to identify needs for action and to create a crossborder knowledge-based network.  NTUA contributes to the various actions of the RIDERSCAN project as an activity partner.

RIDERSCAN launched the 3rd and last survey targeting European motorcyclists. With the objective to draw a European map of rider awareness and acceptance of new technologies applied to the transport systems, the survey is asking riders to evaluate willingness to test, use, and buy systems, which are, for a wide majority of them, far from being introduced in the market. Motorcycle riders and stakeholders are invited to fill in this on-line survey, (in less than 15 minutes), available in several European languages: English  and Greek .

 

February 10th, 2014|Categories: News|Tags: , |

Ministry of Transport – Child and Road Safety Event – Athens 2014

An event on “Child and Road Safety” is organised by the Ministry of Infrastructure, Transport and Networks under the Greek Presidency, which will take place on 5 March 2014, in Athens, at the Ministry Auditorium, on the occasion of the official release of children’s road safety educational book ‘My friend the bike’ and children’s song ‘Mind-Warning’. pdf5

 

February 10th, 2014|Categories: News|Tags: , |

WHO Road Safety Campaigns tool 2014

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has launched a new tool to support development of strong road safety campaigns. This new resource for Governments and civil society organizations, is a part of the Bloomberg Philanthropies Global Road Safety Programme. The library, which contains some of the world’s most impactful road safety video and audio campaigns, is intended as inspiration for those planning to produce their own campaigns by offering a range of creative ideas and concepts. The library is searchable by topic (drinking and driving, motorcycle helmets, and seat-belts, language, etc) or WHO region (currently includes around 60 campaigns). 

February 3rd, 2014|Categories: News|Tags: |

NTUA awarded the TRB annual outstanding paper on safety data analysis 2013

NTUA Assistant Professor Constantinos Antoniou and Associate Professor George Yannis have been awarded with the annual outstanding paper award of the Transportation Research Board Committee ANB20 (Safety Data, Analysis and Evaluation) 2013. The paper awarded concerned the “Assessment of exposure proxies for macroscopic road safety prediction“, published at the Proceedings of the 92nd Annual Meeting of the Transportation Research Board, Washington, January 2013. The objective of this research was to investigate alternative proxy variables (vehicle fleet, GDP, fuel consumption) in macroscopic structural road safety time-series modelling. 

January 14th, 2014|Categories: News|

IOAS – Road Safety Info-Centre in Athens 2013

The Road Safety Institute (R.S.I.) “Panos Mylonas” created a pleasant area in the city center of Athens (Stoa Bibliou, 5 Pesmazoglou Str.), in order to better inform citizens on road safety issues. The Road Safety Information Center (R.S.IC.) was established thanks to the support of Philekpaideutiki Etaireia (Society for the Promotion of Education and Learning) and the Safer Roads Foundation, while the referral Centers for Road Safety (NEST’s) have been developed through the EU funded AVENUE project. 

December 12th, 2013|Categories: News|

The European Road Safety Observatory Wins the Prince Michael International Road Safety Award 2013

The European Road Safety Observatory (ERSO) of the European Commission as developed by the EC co-funded research projectsSafetyNet and Dacota has been awarded the prestigious Prince Michael International Road Safety Award 2013 as recognition for its contribution to making widely available for the first time in Europe a wealth of road safety data and knowledge to support evidence based decision making. Since its opening in 2006, ERSO has attracted millions of visitors seeking the most recent and appropriate data and knowledge covering a wide range of road safety contemporary issues.

NTUA participated actively at all phases of the development of the European Road Safety Observatory. 

December 10th, 2013|Categories: News|

Road Safety Month in Crete 2013

The Road Safety Month in Crete with message “I ‘m careful and I get winner on the road” took place in Crete from 8 to 18 November 2013 and was organised by the four Chambers of Crete together with the Region of Crete, the Municipalities of Herakleon, Chania, Rethimno and Agios Nikolaos, and the participation of the Hellenic Transport Chambers Association and the Road Safety Institute Panos Mylonas. These events were aiming to increase road safety awareness of local communities, given that road accident causes are known and can be prevented. Several activities took place with a large participation of the Crete communities.

NTUA contributed with specialised presentations from the ROSEE project on key road safety issues in the four Workshops organised in Herakleon, Agios Nikolaos, Rethimno and Chania. More specifically, NTUA presentation concerned:

ppt5Road safety of vulnerable road users

ppt5Road safety enforcement
ppt5Speed Management
November 18th, 2013|Categories: News|

World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims 2013

The World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims is observed on the third Sunday of November each year (this year on 17 November 2013) by an increasing number of countries on every continent around the world. This day adopted by the UN in 2005, is dedicated to remembering the many millions killed or injured in road crashes and their families and communities, as well as to pay tribute to the dedicated emergency crews, police and medical professionals who daily deal with the traumatic aftermath of road death and injury.

In Greece this year, Efthita Rhodes and SOS Traffic Crimes, members of FEVR (European Federation of Road Traffic Victims) and the Global Alliance of NGOs for Road Safety, organised a series of events to commemorate this day, including the promotion of the special video translated in several languages.   video

November 17th, 2013|Categories: News|

New edition of Road Safety Charter 2013

The European Road Safety Charter is a participatory road safety platform of businesses, associations, research institutions and public authorities. Signatories perform actions and share good practice in order to solve road safety problems that they encounter in their everyday environments and cut road deaths. The new Charter should maintain civil society’s commitment and ensure pan-European coverage, while addressing vulnerable road users such as children and young people. The new edition aims to simplify the commitment process and operates based on a membership concept under the slogan ‘Together we are road safety’. 

November 8th, 2013|Categories: News|

EU Cross-Border Enforcement Directive 2013

The Cross-Border Enforcement Directive (2011/82/EU) of the European Commission, is now in force since November 7th, 2013. This Directive enables that EU drivers are identified and thus prosecuted for offences committed in a Member State other than the one where their vehicle is registered. EU Member States will exchange information on drivers who commit traffic offences abroad, including the four “big killers” that cause 75% of road fatalities – speeding, running traffic lights, failure to use seatbelts and drink driving. This information exchange will ensure that foreign offenders can be pursued and punished across borders. The Directive targets traffic offences with a critical impact on road safety, namely:
– Speeding or failing to stop at traffic lights,
– Driving under the influence alcohol or drugs,
– Failing to wear a seatbelt or a safety helmet (for motorcyclists),
– Illegal use of mobile phone while driving or of an emergency lane. pdf5
November 7th, 2013|Categories: News|

Pulitzer Roads Kill Maps 2013

Roads Kill” is a Pulitzer Center initiative that draws on its extensive global network of journalists in almost every corner of the world to raise the visibility of this growing public health crisis. The centerpiece of this flexible and fully embeddable digital platform, is an interactive map by clicking on a country one can access an assortment of road safety data, ranging from trend lines on highway fatalities to statistics on the types of vehicles most likely to be involved in fatal crashes. Moreover, there is the option to rove across the map and access an ever-expanding roster of full reports and brief “roads facts” from around the world. 

September 25th, 2013|Categories: News|

TISPOL – Country Driving Guides 2013

The Association of European Police Forces (TISPOL) has recently launched a new section on their website, providing the users with country driving guides. TISPOL’s guides provide clear and easy to follow information to answer the most frequently asked questions by visiting drivers. Recent changes in legislation are highlighted and tips on what to do in the event of a breakdown or accident are provided. 

September 2nd, 2013|Categories: News|

NHTSA launches pedestrian safety initiative 2013

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) are working hard to raise awareness of the dangers to pedestrians, and to provide leadership, expertise, and resources to communities across America to combat these crashes. Everyone has different preferences when it comes to transportation, but there’s one that all road users share – everyone is a pedestrian. ‘Everyone is a pedestrian’ initiative urges parents, caregivers, educators, traffic safety officials, and advocates to make the most of pedestrian safety resources to improve the quality of life in their communities. 

 

August 9th, 2013|Categories: News|Tags: |

UN Ban Ki-moon’s recommendations include road safety 2013

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has released his recommendations for the Post-2015 development agenda which include road safety among key public health actions. Globally, road injury has become a severe health burden for young people – and particularly for young men. It is the number one cause of death for young people aged 15-29 and the second biggest killer of men aged 30-40 after HIV/AIDS. 

July 26th, 2013|Categories: News|

European Council agreement on vehicles roadworthiness 2013

The European Council has adopted new rules to toughen up the testing regime and widen its scope. More than 5 people die on Europe’s roads every day in accidents linked to technical failures, which are responsible for 6% of all car accidents and 8% of all motorcycle accident. The new proposals aim to save more than 1.200 lives a year and to avoid more than 36.000 accidents linked to technical failure. Key elements of the new proposals include:
– Compulsory EU wide testing for scooters and motorbikes,
– Motorbike and scooter riders, particularly young riders, are the highest risk group of road users,
– Increasing the frequency of periodic roadworthiness tests for old vehicles,
– Increasing the frequency of tests for cars and vans with exceptionally high mileage,
– Improving the quality of vehicle tests,
– Making electronic safety components subject to mandatory testing,
-Clamping down on mileage fraud, with registered mileage readings.  
June 13th, 2013|Categories: News|

European Commission proposal for mandatory eCall 2013

The European Commission adopted two proposals to help mitigate the consequences of serious road accidents across the EU. By October 2015, cars will automatically call emergency services in case of a serious crash. The “eCall” system automatically dials 112 – Europe’s single emergency number – in the event of a serious accident. It communicates the vehicle’s location to emergency services, even if the driver is unconscious or unable to make a phone call. It is estimated that it could save up to 2.500 lives a year (MEMO/13/547). 

June 13th, 2013|Categories: News|Tags: |

Oikopolis – NTUA scientific work awarded 2013

The ceremony for the 2013 Environmental Sensitivity Awards OIKOPOLIS 2013, organised by ECOCITY took place on June 5th, 2013, in Athens. The OIKOPOLIS awards aim to promote general environmental awareness and develop social participation of enterprises, associations and institutions to undertake or support actions for the environment.

NTUA Associate Professor George Yannis was awarded for his overall scientific work on sustainable urban mobility, including his extensive work on road safety.  He underlined that “urban mobility and safety are primary components of the urban environment and that the transportation engineers in Greece persist fighting to convincing authorities and citizens for the necessary sustainable mobility and safety solutions in the Greek cities”.  

June 7th, 2013|Categories: News|

ETSC – Integrating Safety into the EU’s Urban Transport Policy 2013

ETSC’s expectations of the European Commission’s upcoming urban mobility package (that will be presented in late 2013), is that it will lay out measures that will contribute to reducing road deaths by 50% by 2020 in urban areas. Transport safety should be considered as an essential component of sustainable mobility and mobility planning.

In attempting to secure change in urban mobility patterns, road safety can be regarded as a critical challenge, largely because of the social and economic cost of road collisions. Real and perceived safety can have a profound effect on modal choice especially in terms of the most sustainable modes of travel – walking and cycling and ability to access public transport. ETSC strongly recommends that safety should be integrated not only into the development of Urban Mobility Plans, but also into proposed Urban Mobility Audits and Guidelines and be reflected in common targets. pdf5

June 5th, 2013|Categories: News|Tags: |

GRSP Annual Report 2012

The Global Road Safety Partnership Annual Report has recently been published. The report summarises in brief the actions taken by the Global Road Safety Partnership during the year 2012 to encourage and to increase road safety efforts within the framework of the Decade of Action and to build and share knowledge to achieve a reduction in road crash death and injury.

June 3rd, 2013|Categories: News|

EFTHYTA Rhodes – Road safety walking campaign 2013

A large road safety campaign organised by EFTHYTA Rhodes took place on May 19th, 2013 in Rhodes island in Greece, with main message: I am walking for safe roads for all.  People walked along the city center passing the message “We walk for life ….”.  Mrs Eleni Karydi, Head of EFTHITA Rhodes called citizens, Authorities and all stakeholders of Rhodes to persist fighting for safer roads with less accidents.  

May 20th, 2013|Categories: News|

NTUA Civil Engineering School ranked 25th worldwide 2013

The Civil Engineering School of the National Technical University of Athens was ranked 25th among all Civil Engineering Schools worldwide and 7th in Europe. This ranking is produced by the QS Organisation based on selected criteria: academic reputation (40%), employer reputation (10%), citations per faculty by scopus (20%), faculty student ratio (20%), proportion of international students and faculty (10%). NTUA road safetyactivities have contributed to this ranking.

Professor John Golias, Dean of the Civil Engineering School said that this great improvement is the result of the systematic and collective efforts of all Faculty members for academic and research excellence. 

May 15th, 2013|Categories: News|

IOAS – Road Safety FlashMob in Athens – 2013

The first ever in the world Road Safety Flashmob was organised on Friday May 10th, 2013 in Athens by the Road Safety Institute (I.O.AS.) – RSI “Panos Mylonas”, with the support of the European Commission and the European Youth Forum. The event took place in Syntagma square, the most central square of Athens, during the UN Global Road Safety Week (6-12 May 2013) for the promotion of road safety through the message “Stop road crashes”. IOAS President, Mrs Vasiliki Danelli-Mylonain a recent speech during the UN Global Road Safety Week stressed the importance of road safety campaigns: “Together we can make it loud, for our friends, our colleagues, our fellow citizens, our politicians”. video

May 10th, 2013|Categories: News|

Road Safety Inter-Ministry Committee Meeting chaired by the President of the Hellenic Republic 2013

The President of the Hellenic Republic Mr. Karolos Papoulias has received on April 22nd, 2013 the Members of the Road Safety Inter-Ministry Committee and discussed and adopted a series of necessary measures of each Ministry for the improvement of road safety in Greece. The Chairman of the Inter-Ministry Committee Mr. Kostis Hatzidakis, Minister of Development and Infrastructure stressed the importance of theimplementation of the national strategic plan and the enhancement of the Secretariat of the Inter-Ministry Committee.

NTUA Professor George Kanellaidis pointed out the key messages of the national road safety strategic plan 2011-2020 prepared by NTUA: development of road safety culture, coordination and efficient implementation and monitoring of the road safety measures. 

May 2nd, 2013|Categories: News|

UN / WHO – The Long Short Walk 2013

The Long Short Walk is a fun activity with a serious aim, it is part of the Zenani Campaign and is in support of UN Global Road Safety week on 6-12 May 2013, themed around pedestrian safety. The Second UN Global Road Safety Week from 6-12 May 2013 is led by the World Health Organization, UN regional commissions and members of the UN Road Safety Collaboration. The week coincides with the second anniversary of the Decade of Action for Road Safety. In support of UN Global Road Safety Week The Long Short Walk aims to bring together people and groups from around the world to call for action to protect pedestrians.

April 17th, 2013|Categories: News|Tags: , |

UN Road Safety Week on Pedestrian Safety 2013

The second United Nations Global Road Safety Week is dedicated topedestrian safety and will be held 6-12 May 2013. The Road Safety Week will draw attention to the urgent need to better protect pedestrians worldwide, generate action on the measures needed to do so, and contribute to achieving the goal of the Decade of Action for Road Safety 2011-2020, to save 5 million lives. Useful resources and ideas for pedestrian safety are proposed: Activities, Design Guides, Guidelines, Policy, Research Reports. 

March 1st, 2013|Categories: News|Tags: |

The New European Driving Licence 2013

From January 19th 2013, all new driving licences issued across the EU will be in the form of a plastic “credit card”, with a standard European format and tougher security protection. The new European licence will progressively replace the more than 100 different paper and plastic models currently in use by more than 300 million drivers across the EU. It is a part of a broader package of measures (3rd EU Driving Licence Directive) coming into force to guarantee a true freedom of movement to EU drivers, reinforce safety on European roads and reduce possibilities of fraud. 

January 18th, 2013|Categories: News|

John Frantzeskakis Transportation Engineering Experiences 2012

A new book of NTUA Professor Emeritus John Frantzeskakis and first Chairman of the Hellenic Institute of Transportation Engineers, titled “Experiences 1958-2012 of a Greek Transportation Engineer from the urban areas in Greece and abroad” has been just published by Papasotirou Editions, Greece.  A special chapter on road safety summarises the more than 30 years scientific contributions of Prof. Frantzeskakis to the reduction of road accident casualties in Greece and in Europe. doi

November 20th, 2012|Categories: News|

The new DaCoTA Road Safety Knowledge System 2012

The DaCoTA EU Project Team and the European Commission are introducing the new Road Safety Knowledge System website. The aim is to make it accessible to the Road Safety Community internationally and to inform and share the benefits of this research with the widest range of people – policy-makers, police, rescue and medical services, road systems designers, vehicle manufacturers, the insurance industry, infrastructure project organisations, transport user groups and representatives. A wide range of topics is covered including:

  • Safety Issues: state of the art information on road safety topics,
  • http://safetyknowsys.swov.nl/Safety_issues/Safety-issues.html
  • Country Tools: country overviews, forecasts and indexes comparing EU countries,
  • http://safetyknowsys.swov.nl/Countries/Countries.html
  • Statistics: annual statistical reports, basic fact sheets, crash data, exposure data, performance indicators, driver attitudes and behaviour, causation information,
  • http://safetyknowsys.swov.nl/Statistics/Statistics.html
  • Methods: data specifications and protocols
  • http://safetyknowsys.swov.nl/Methods/Methods.html
  • Links: key links and summaries of a large number of road safety organisations.
  • http://safetyknowsys.swov.nl/Links/Links.asp 
October 15th, 2012|Categories: News|

The first eCall in Greece 2012

The Greek eΚΛΗΣΗ project is now in the final stages of creating an automatic warning system in case of a traffic accident. The first tests of the automatic emergency call system (eCall), within the frame of the pilot national research project eΚΛΗΣΗ (http://www.ecall-hellas.eu/), have been successfully concluded. The tests were performed on a prototype system and rooted emergency calls from the In Vehicle System (IVS), which was implemented by the Institute of Communication and Computer Systems (ICCS), an ERTICO partner, to the Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP), which was implemented by SPACE HELLAS, through the mobile telecommunication network of COSMOTE. The national project eΚΛΗΣΗ prepares Greece for the implementation of the eCall service which will be obligatory for all EU member-states from end 2014. 

October 4th, 2012|Categories: News|Tags: |

US DOT launches largest-ever road test of connected vehicles 2012

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration of the US Department of Transportation launches the largest-ever road test of connected vehicle crash avoidance technology. Nearly 3,000 cars, trucks and buses equipped with “connected” Wi-Fi technology to enable vehicles and infrastructure to “talk” to each other in real time to help avoid crashes and improve traffic flow will begin traversing Ann Arbor’s streets today as part of a year-long safety pilot project. Conducted by University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute (UMTRI), the road test, or model deployment, is a first-of-its-kind test of connected vehicle technology in the real world. The test cars, trucks and buses, most of which have been supplied by volunteer participants, are equipped with vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) and vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) communication devices that will gather extensive data about system operability and its effectiveness at reducing crashes. 

September 10th, 2012|Categories: News|

The European Motorcyclists Forum 2012

A joint effort by the European Commission and the Federation of European Motorcyclists’ Associations, the European Motorcyclists’ Forum is a platform for discussion on safety, mobility and the future of two-wheel transport in Europe. The forum took place on in Cologne on 3rd October 2012 and it will be  open to all stakeholders interested in two-wheel mobility, where it will be possible to assess the problems, explore solutions, raise awareness and set the conditions for implementing actions. 

September 3rd, 2012|Categories: News|Tags: |

RSI Road safety campaign summer 2012

The Road Safety Institute “Panos Mylonas” and the Representation of the European Commission in Greece continue their efforts to raise awareness and improve the numbers of road traffic accidents in Greece, occurring especially during summer time. For this reason they have launched a road safety awareness raising campaign has been created to inform and sensitize both Greek civilians and foreign visitors of the country during summer time.

 

July 19th, 2012|Categories: News|Tags: |

Road Restraint Systems Website by ERF 2012

The European Union Road Safety Federation within its activities for road infrastructure safety improvement, has launched a new website dedicated to road restraint systems (RRS). Road Restraint Systems are one of the most efficient and cost-effective road infrastructure solutions that can reduce the impact of a road accident and the number of fatalities and injuries for the vehicle passengers. 

July 19th, 2012|Categories: News|

440 New Greek Standards for Public Works 2012

The Deputy Minister for Public Works has issued Ministerial Decree  (ΔΙΠΑΔ/ΟΙΚ/273 published at the Official Journal 2221/2013) concerning 440 New Greek Standards for Public Works.  Several of these new standards concern road works and are directly linked to road safety.

 

July 17th, 2012|Categories: News|

Award to Greek Insurances’ Road Safety Campaign 2012

The campaign of the Hellenic Association of Insurance Companies (EAEE) for the Prevention of Road Accidents in 2011,  has been awarded with the creativity award ERMIS ‘silver’ in the category ‘direct – programs of social activity’. The campaign centered on a tow truck with a crashed car on the platform and the message “He drank, he drove, he was killed. What will you do?”. The truck drove around crowded with young people areas of Athens, in order to draw their attention and prevent them from driving under the influence of alcohol. At the same time, a team placed in parked cars and motorcycles over 30,000 leaflets with road safety messages.  video

June 14th, 2012|Categories: News|

EC Public Consultation on injury data 2012

A public consultation is in progress by the European Commission. The questionnaire will provide input for the drafting of a strategy to reduce the severity of injuries caused by road traffic accidents. The questionnaire addresses general issues related to road safety and more specific issues on how to improve the data available on victims of accidents and their collection at EU level, and on how to target some specific groups of road users. The European Commission will take stock of all the relevant information on this subject with a view to develop the comprehensive strategy on road traffic injuries. 

May 1st, 2012|Categories: News|Tags: , |

CERTH/HIT Ten years of alcohol campaigns

CERTH/HIT is organising several events in Greece in celebration of ten years since the start of the public awareness campaign  “Alcohol – Not Tonight, I am Driving”.  The main aims were to raise young people’s awareness of the risk of drinking and driving and to encourage the use of the designated driver concept (as normal behaviour). pdf5

April 12th, 2012|Categories: News|

World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims 2011

The World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims on November 21st is a day for reminding of why a world free of high risk roads is so important. There will be 3,500 new victims in the next 24 hours, and an estimated 100,000 people injured.  This day is used as an inspiration for every community to keep up working for road safety. Statements in support of this year’s World Day of Remembrance were addressed from the UN Secretary-General, Mr Ban Ki-moon, and from the Chair of the UN Road Safety Collaboration, Dr Etienne Krug. In Greece, initiatives are organised by IOAS, EFTHITA-Rhodes and SOS-Traffic Crimes

November 21st, 2011|Categories: News|

New MSc on Road And Vehicle Safety in Loughborough 2011

The Loughborough Design School is an international centre of excellence for Design, Ergonomics, Safety and Education. This new MSc in Road and Vehicle Safety is being offered by the Transport Safety Research Centre (TSRC), based within the Design School and is aimed at those who wish to extend and deepen their skills and understanding of this vast and expanding field of knowledge. Reducing injury on today’s roads no longer focuses on any single approach. In addition to crash protection of vehicle occupants there is a need to prevent crashes occurring. In this respect, effective improvement of traffic safety requires a knowledge of a wider range of approaches. 

June 27th, 2011|Categories: News|

New Greek signatories of the European Road Safety Charter 2011

The European Road Safety Charter is an initiative of the European Commission aiming to engage with concrete actions as many as possible civil society organisations to the improvement of road safety in Europe, in order to achieve the common objective: to help reduce road fatalities and injuries. The Charter has more than 2.000 signatories. On March 3rd, 2011, several Greek Organisations signed the European Road Safety Charter and joined the large list of Greek signatories. 

March 3rd, 2011|Categories: News|Tags: |

NTUA Road Safety event with the President of the Republic 2008

On June 3rd, 2008, NTUA organized an event on Road Safety under the auspices of the President of the Hellenic Republic. The event was held in the Old Parliament House and was attended by more than 250 people, including Ministers, Members of the Parliament and other key road safety experts. At the key note speech Professor George Kanellaidis highlighted the current challenges of road safety in Greece and stressed the importance of the strategic planning for the improvement of road safety in Greece. pdf5

June 3rd, 2008|Categories: News|

European Road Safety Day – The target is attainable 2007

During the European Road Safety Day on April 27th, 2007, organised by the European Commission it was stated that the European action plan continues to deliver results and the target of saving 25.000 lives on Europe’s roads by 2010 is attainable. Greece is lagging behind with a fatalities decrease of 11% in comparison to the 22% average decrease in Europe of 27. link

 

April 27th, 2007|Categories: News|Tags: , |