Alexandros Kiratzis, “Investigation of the impact of advertising sings to driver behaviour and safety at the interurban network”, Diploma Thesis, NTUA, School of Civil Engineering, Athens, March 2026.

The objective of this diploma thesis is to investigate the influence of roadside billboards on driver behaviour and safety on the interurban road network. To achieve this objective, an experimental procedure was conducted using a driving simulator, in which all participants drove under different driving scenarios. Statistical regression models were developed in order to determine the effect of roadside billboards on several key driving behaviour indicators, including mean driving speed and the lateral distance of the vehicle from the right lane marking (lognormal regression), as well as the mean driver reaction time in an unexpected event and the mean following distance from the preceding vehicle (linear regression). The results of the developed models indicate that the presence of roadside billboards leads to a statistically significant increase in drivers’ reaction time, the lateral distance from the right lane marking, and the mean following distance from the preceding vehicle, while at the same time it leads to a statistically significant decrease in mean driving speed, perhaps as risk compensation, with final result that the presence of roadside billboards does not appear to have any significant influence on the probability of involvement in a traffic crash.