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NTUA within the framework of the 8th UN Global Road Safety Week
organized with great success a Scientific Workshop titled “Artificial
Intelligence for Road Safety and Mobility” which was held in Athens (and online) on May 15th, 2025. The objective of this Workshop was to highlight through an intensive flow of presentations the main findings and challenges of key road safety and mobility research projects carried out within the NTUA Department of Transportation Planning and Engineering.    |
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Latest Developments
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The fourth edition of Road Safety Manual (RSM) developed by the World Road Association (PIARC) is now available. It is designed to help countries at every stage of infrastructure development to fulfil road safety objectives and
it is aligned with key pillars for the United Nations Decade of Action
for Road Safety 2021-2030: Pillar 1: Multimodal transport and land use
planning, Pillar 2: Safe Road Infrastrucure and Pillar 4: Safe Road
Use. This comprehensive resource builds on the broad range of knowledge
and experience provided by PIARC in the previous editions. It includes
new thinking on road safety and offers a clear argument on why adopting a
Safe System approach is crucial for all countries. |
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The European Commission with the active contribution of NTUA, SWOV and KFV has published at the European Road Safety Observatory, the Pedestrians Thematic Report
which refers to the safety of vulnerable road users that suffer the
most severe consequences in collisions with other road users. This
Thematic Report describes how pedestrians participate in traffic, as
well as pedestrians in relation to road safety hazards.
Furthermore, countermeasures about land use planning, road design,
visibility, vehicle design of crash opponents, education, training and
enforcement are suggested.  |
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The European Road Safety Charter of the European Commission, has recently published a new Article focusing
on helmet use and seatbelt/child restraint systems, aiming to increase
the attention to theis use. Studies suggest that when cycling, helmet
use reduces the risk of serious head injury by 60% and fatal head injury
by 71%, also according to the WHO, wearing a quality motorbike helmet reduces the risk of death by over six times
and the risk of brain injury by up to 74%. Wearing a seatbelt reduces
the risk of death and injury by around 60% for drivers and 44% for
rear-seat passengers. Correct use of a child restraint system reduces
the risk of being killed or injured by around 55% to 60% compared with
children who are not buckled up. |
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Statistics Corner
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The European Commission with the active contribution of NTUA, SWOV and KFV has published at the European Road Safety Observatory, the Support for Policy Measures Report which focuses on the public support of many road safety policy measures,
including zero tolerance for alcohol (0.0‰) for all drivers,
installation of an alcohol ‘interlock’ system and the legal obligation
to install ISA in new vehicles. Furthermore, the public support of the
zero tolerance for using any type of mobile phone while driving for all
drivers, the requirement for all cyclists to wear a helmet, as well as
the requirement for cyclists to wear reflective material when cycling in
the dark, are presented. |
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The Driving under the influence (DUI) of alcohol, drugs or medication Thematic Report of the E-Survey of Road Users’ Safety Attitudes (ESRA) has been published, as prepared by VIAS Institute, with the active support of NTUA.
This Report provides a detailed analysis of self-declared behaviors,
perceived acceptability, and attitudes towards impaired driving across
39 countries in Europe, America, and Asia-Oceania. Key findings show
notable differences between regions, with higher self-declared DUI rates in Luxembourg, Thailand and Mexico,
while countries like Kyrgyzstan, Armenia and Japan report the lowest
rates. The report also highlights the role of enforcement perception and
the need for improved DUI countermeasures. |
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Our Publications
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WHO Regional Office for Europe together with Vias institute organized with great success the 3rd E-Survey of Road Users’ Attitudes (ESRA3) Webinar which took place online, on 7 May 2025 focusing on supporting road safety insights, policies and practices.
The Webinar focused on the key insights of the ESRA initiative,
speeding behaviour and support for 30km/h zones. Particular emphasis was
also given to gender specific risk and policies in road safety, age and
impaired driving. NTUA actively contributed with the following presentation:
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The Hellenic Institute of Transport (HIT) οf the Centre for Research and Technology (CERTH/EKETA)
together with the Road Tolls Service - Electronic Management of Road
Infrastructure (YOT-HDOY) organized with great success a two-day
workshop titled “Data Quality and NAP Best Practices” in the framework
of the European Commission NAPCORE project,
which took place with great success in Athens, Greece on 5-6 May 2025.
The aim of this Event was to bring together the project participants to discuss the current status, the future prospects and the progress of National Data Access Points in the EU. NTUA actively contributed with the following presentation:
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At a recent podcast in Lifo, NTUA Professor George Yannis is
decoding the new Greek Road Code proposal for 30km/h speed limit in all
cities in Greece, the great opportunity for a new safe and sustainable
mobility culture. Drawing from extensive European data and simulation
studies, he pointed out that city-wide 30km/h speed limit is the since-long waited single road safety measure with such a significant benefit at such a low cost.
The myth that lower speed limits significantly delay travel times was
refuted by evidence showing only negligible differences and even
mid-term traffic improvement. The innovative and impactful NTUA campaign
of 30 Marathons in 30 months,
implemented by Prof. Yannis, to actively promote the adoption of 30km/h
speed limit in all cities worldwide was also highlighted. Full article and related audio-podcast are now available. |
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A paper titled Investigation of hit-and-run crash severity through explainable machine learning authored by Stella Roussou, Apostolos Ziakopoulos and George Yannis, has been published in Transportation Letters. This
study, uses a 5-year dataset from Victoria, Australia and analyzed with
CatBoost algorithms and SHAP values using explainable machine learning
techniques, to highlight key severity factors. Findings suggest that the presence of police at the crash scene emerges as the most critical determinant,
underscoring the importance of law enforcement in mitigating severe
crash outcomes. Furthermore crashes involving passenger vehicles and
those on weekends were also linked to higher severity. These novel
findings offer valuable insights for targeted interventions and
policy-making to mitigate the impact of severe hit-and-run crashes and
enhance road safety.  |
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A NTUA Diploma Thesis titled “Cost-benefit analysis of reducing speed limits on Greek highways” was recently presented by Michalis Nikolaou.
For this reason, participants evaluated choices based on travel time,
fuel consumption, and accident risk. Three scenarios were analyzed: (I)
reducing the speed limit from 130 to 120 km/h, (II) reducing it to 110
km/h, and (III) no change, using binary and multinomial logistic
regression models. To assess economic viability, a Cost-Benefit Analysis
(CBA) was conducted for the period 2023-2033. This study provides
valuable insights for policymakers and stakeholders, offering an in-depth understanding of public perception and acceptance of lower speed limits, which is crucial for developing effective and widely accepted road safety interventions in Greece.  |
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Upcoming Events
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The Dutch Institute for Road Safety (SWOV) is organizing the Trendline 2025 Conference which will take place in The Hague, Netherlands on 10-11 June 2025,
a key event for professionals working with road safety data, policy,
and innovation. This Conference will present the results of the initial
road safety KPIs, compare these with the Baseline values, discuss the
methodologies for the new KPIs, and show how KPIs can be used to support
road safety policies. This Event is expected to bring together partners
from across Europe and the participants will be updated on the next
phase of Trendline.  Participation is free upon registration. Programme can be found here. |
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The European Survey of Road users’ safety Attitudes (ESRA) together with VIAS Institute are organizing the ESRA: 10 years event of global road safety insights and impact which will take place in Brussels, Belgium on 24 June 2025.
This event is a unique opportunity to reflect on the evolution of the
ESRA initiative and its impact on road safety policy. Key findings from
10 years of research will be presented, unveiling a dedicated report and
the new ESRA dashboard, and will be explored how these insights can
drive future improvements in road safety. Furthermore, ESRA4 will be
introduced, the next phase in the mission to create safer roads through
data-driven strategies. |
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The European Transport Safety Council (ETSC) is organizing the 2025 ETSC Road Safety Performance Index event which will take place in Brussels, Belgium on 24 June 2025. ETSC
will present the findings of the PIN Annual Report looking at progress
in reducing road deaths and serious injuries across Europe.
Furthermore, a panel discussion will look at how reducing speed could
help us reach the 2030 target of reducing road deaths and serious
injuries by 50%. The European Transport Safety Council (ETSC) is also
expected to present its 2025 Road Safety Performance Index (PIN)
Award to a country for its progress in improving road safety. |
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The European Commission and the Hungarian Public Roads together with the European Transport Research Platforms ACARE, ALICE, CEDR, ECTP, ERRAC, ERTRAC, ETRA and Waterborne are organizing the Transport Research Arena Conference (TRA2026) which will take place in Budapest, Hungary on 18-21 May 2026. The conference aims to advance sustainable, inclusive, and innovative transportation solutions under the theme "ReGeneration in Transport". Researchers can submit their abstracts until 15 June 2025. | | | |
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