Car drivers

ASPI acknowledges the need to build an integrated ecosystem encompassing infrastructure, vehicles, traffic management, and data governance.
On a motorway network, one of the most critical risks arises from the coexistence of live traffic and maintenance worksites, which exposes two groups of people to hazard every day: road users and site operators. Managing this overlap across an infrastructure of around 3,000 km calls for an innovative and systemic approach.
The “Advanced Traffic Mobility Management System” project therefore, stems from the clear goal of structurally reducing risk exposure by acting in an integrated manner on planning and information, such as:
optimizing the planning of roadworks by scheduling them in time windows with lower traffic volume, to reduce interference between traffic flows and operational activities; strengthening user information through advanced tools to anticipate traffic conditions and enable safer, more informed mobility choices.
The initiative is fully aligned with the EU’s Vision Zero-zero road deaths by 2050 and halving deaths and serious injuries by 2030.

The speed of modern highway traffic represents one of the greatest risks for highway maintenance and patrol operators. Traditional safety measures such as arrow boards, flashing lights and roadside signage remain essential, but they are increasingly challenged by driver distraction and the growing complexity of traffic environments.
On the R1 expressway in Slovakia, maintenance and patrol vehicles frequently operate in live traffic conditions where approaching drivers may not recognize a hazard until it is too late to react safely. Even a brief lapse in attention can lead to severe collisions, injuries, secondary crashes and significant disruption to traffic flow.
Via Pribina identified a critical need to close the gap between roadside incidents and driver awareness. Traditional warning systems provide information only when the hazard becomes visible. However, at motorway speeds, valuable reaction time may already be lost.
The challenge was therefore to create a solution that would deliver safety information directly to approaching drivers before they reached the incident location.
The objective was to transform conventional roadside safety measures into proactive digital alerts capable of supporting safer driving behaviour, reducing collision risks and improving protection for both road workers and motorists.

The main road safety challenge we address is the lack of clear, objective insight into real-life traffic behaviour around primary schools. These locations concentrate large numbers of vulnerable and inexperienced road users—particularly children—who face increased risks in complex traffic environments. During school peak hours, traffic volumes intensify within a short time frame. Parents arriving by car, combined with cyclists and pedestrians, create congested and often chaotic situations. This leads to unsafe conditions such as unclear routing, risky crossing behaviour, informal parking, and frequent near-misses. A key issue is that traditional traffic data methods—such as counts, surveys or incidental observations—fail to capture the dynamic interactions between different road users. As a result, many risks remain invisible or are only addressed after incidents occur.
In addition, there is often a mismatch between infrastructure, behaviour and organisation. Measures are frequently implemented in isolation, limiting their effectiveness.
We address these challenges by making risks visible before accidents occur, focusing on school environments where improving everyday safety for children has the greatest societal impact.

In 2020, we undertook a comprehensive review of our vehicle safety strategy. At that time, our primary focus was on accident management, driver safety, and identifying ways to reduce both the risks our employees faced while driving and the potential risks our vehicles posed to other road users. By "posed," we refer to the fact that our fleet consisted of relatively basic vehicles, with few advanced safety features included as standard.

The initiative presented several challenges. Cost was a significant consideration, as we needed to build a strong business case to justify the additional investment required for enhanced vehicle safety features. We also needed to engage with a workforce that had strong trade union representation, making consultation and communication an essential part of the implementation process.

The programme began with the delivery of our first upgraded vehicles in 2020. At a time when advanced safety technologies attracted a substantial premium, we made a deliberate decision to invest heavily in improving the safety of our fleet. Looking back, that investment has proven to be highly successful. The results have clearly demonstrated the value of prioritising vehicle safety, with a significant positive impact on both driver protection and overall risk reduction.

Operating a national fleet of over 850 vehicles supporting more than 2,000 employees presents a unique range of road safety challenges. Employees travel daily to high-risk environments including railway level crossings, bridges, trackside locations and busy public roads, often transporting specialised equipment and working under time-critical conditions. Protecting employees and other road users while maintaining operational effectiveness remains a key priority.

Before the introduction of GSR, we had already made significant investments in vehicle safety. This included implementing telematics systems, forward- and rear-facing dash cams, and, most importantly, passive safety features across our fleet. These measures helped improve driver behaviour monitoring, incident reporting, and occupant protection. The main challenge was the cost and logistics of upgrading vehicles and ensuring consistent implementation across the fleet. However, by taking a proactive approach to safety rather than waiting for regulatory requirements, we were able to enhance driver and passenger protection, reduce risk, and establish a strong safety culture within the organisation.

One of the principal challenges has been reducing occupational road risk by ensuring that both the driver and vehicle are fit for purpose. Experience gained through managing large commercial fleets has shown that vehicle safety alone is not enough; driver behaviour, competency, fatigue awareness and vehicle utilisation all play a critical role in reducing incidents. Historically, many organisations have relied on reactive measures following collisions. Our approach has been to move towards proactive risk management.

Additional challenges included integrating specialist railway maintenance equipment safely within vehicles, adapting to emerging technologies, and preparing for the transition to electric vehicles without compromising safety standards. The increasing complexity of modern vehicle technology also required continuous education and engagement with drivers to ensure advanced safety systems were fully understood and effectively utilised.

Road safety still faces a critical blind spot: vehicles are increasingly advanced, but they remain vulnerable when the road surface suddenly loses grip. Snow and ice are among the most dangerous examples, because they reduce tyre-road friction, increase braking distances, compromise steering control and can trigger loss-of-control events before the driver or the vehicle can react effectively.
This is not a marginal issue. According to the World Health Organization, road crashes still cause around 1.19 million deaths every year, and urgent action is needed to halve deaths and injuries by 2030. Weather-related risks are also measurable: FHWA data for the United States show that weather-related crashes account for nearly 745,000 crashes per year on average, with freezing precipitation alone linked to about 219,942 crashes, 34,206 injuries and 407 fatalities annually.
AIS 2 addresses this challenge by moving beyond detection and driver warning. It is designed to actively improve grip conditions on snow and ice, helping vehicles maintain control in situations where conventional ADAS, braking and stability systems are limited by the physical lack of friction. The goal is simple: prevent avoidable accidents caused by low-grip winter conditions.

The Tarandė Street reconstruction project was developed to address several significant road safety challenges in a rapidly growing residential area of Vilnius. Increasing traffic volumes, combined with insufficient infrastructure for pedestrians and cyclists, created safety risks for vulnerable road users and reduced the attractiveness of active mobility options.
Prior to the project, pedestrian and cycling connections were fragmented, and road users frequently shared space with motor vehicles. The lack of continuous and dedicated infrastructure increased the risk of conflicts between different road users, particularly children, older adults, and people travelling on foot or by bicycle. In addition, traffic speeds and limited visibility in certain areas contributed to an increased risk of road incidents.
The project aimed to improve safety for all road users while prioritising the needs of vulnerable groups. Key objectives included reducing the likelihood and severity of traffic collisions, improving the quality and continuity of pedestrian and cycling routes, enhancing visibility at crossings and intersections, and creating a safer and more accessible public space.
Through the development of new pedestrian and cycling infrastructure, safer street design solutions, and improved connectivity with residential areas and public transport, the project promotes safer travel, encourages sustainable mobility choices, and supports the creation of a more people-centred urban environment. The project contributes to Vilnius City's long-term vision of achieving safer, more inclusive, and more sustainable streets for all.

S4SC addresses a key road safety challenge on two-lane rural roads where motor vehicles and cyclists share the same carriageway. These roads are frequently used by sport cyclists, both individually and in groups, while motor vehicles travel at relatively high speeds. This combination creates complex and potentially risky interactions, especially during overtaking manoeuvres.
One of the main problems is the lack of real-time information for drivers. Existing warning signs may indicate that cyclists could be present, but they do not tell drivers whether cyclists are actually on the road segment, how many cyclists they may encounter, or whether they should adjust their speed before entering it. As a result, drivers may not anticipate the presence of cyclists early enough, which can reduce their attention and increase the risk of unsafe overtaking.
The challenge is particularly relevant when cyclists ride in groups, as drivers may need more time, space, and awareness to overtake safely. The initiative, therefore, focuses on improving the coexistence between motor vehicles and vulnerable road users on rural roads.

Road traffic crashes remain a major public health challenge, representing the leading cause of death among children and young people aged 5–29 worldwide. Greece is no exception to this reality, with vulnerable road users facing evolving mobility challenges, including the growing use of e-scooters and other personal mobility devices alongside traditional road safety risks, reinforcing the need for early, practical and age-appropriate road safety education.
At national level, this challenge is further compounded by the fact that road safety education is not compulsory within the school curriculum and is largely left to the discretion of teachers, who may choose whether to implement it through skills-based workshops. As a result, many children and young people have limited opportunities to develop the knowledge, skills and attitudes required to become safe and responsible road users through structured learning.
At regional level in Northern Greece, there was a clear need for an innovative and accessible educational initiative capable of bringing together the expertise of the road safety sector, local communities and the private sector in order to strengthen prevention efforts and engage different population groups within a shared road safety framework.
These interconnected challenges highlight a clear gap in structured, experiential and inclusive road safety education, which this initiative was designed to address.

Nea Odos operates one of Greece's most strategically important motorway corridors - the 196 km Ionia Odos (A5), part of the European E65 route At Nea Odos, road safety relies on a coordinated ecosystem of processes, systems, human and material resources. Our daily goal is to enhance operational capacity through innovation with measurable improvements in detection and response times, while setting a benchmark for the industry.
To support this goal, we deployed an AI-powered system for 24/7 maintenance, surveillance, and driver information, along the entire length of the Ionia Odos highway addressing critical motorway safety challenges such as animal incursions, pedestrian presence, vehicles moving against traffic etc These high-risk events require significant resources and are often linked to severe incidents.
Traditional monitoring systems rely on fixed infrastructure with limited coverage and adaptability. Furthermore, the growing number of data sources—sensors, navigation apps, crowd inputs, and weather data—often leads to fragmentation, operator overload, and inconsistent alerts. As a result, operators must cross-check multiple systems, delaying event validation, response, and communication.
To address these challenges, Nea Odos partnered with Valerann to integrate AI-powered cameras, geolocation and multi-source data analytics into a unified platform - Lanternn. Goal to improve detection speed and accuracy, reduces response times, and enable faster, targeted response.
By integrating diverse data Nea Odos is advancing safer, smarter motorway operations without costly infrastructure expansion.

Road accidents are a leading cause of non-natural death in Spain and generate disability and social costs.

This project would be situated in the pre-accident phase, characterized by intervention on the human factor from a healthcare perspective.

Directive (EU) 2025/2205 of the European Parliament and of the Council. Article 11: Compliance with minimum physical and mental fitness requirements. Point 7: This Article shall not prevent Member States from adopting measures to raise awareness and improve the knowledge of the healthcare sector and driving licence holders regarding the minimum physical and mental fitness requirements for driving set out in Annex III.

Thus, within traffic medicine, we understand this to be the branch concerned with the analysis, detection, and prevention of the human factors involved in the causes of road accidents, through the adaptation and modification of behaviors, attitudes, and habits related to traffic and road use.

Therefore, this project brings together epidemiological and preventive criteria to be included in the concept of traffic medicine and in the area of Primary Care (Health Center/family medicine).