Training

Serious accidents involving the so-called “blind spot” of heavy commercial vehicles, as well as a safety summit convened years ago by the city government, prompted the Vienna Chamber of Commerce to take initiative as early as 2017. The goal of the traffic safety project "The Dangers of the Blind Spot” is to raise awareness among pupils (3rd and 4th grade, by the age of 8-12 years) about potential sources of danger through theoretical instruction and then to train proper behavior in the area of the blind spot at a practical training station.

Our project directly addresses the challenge of engaging young, high-risk drivers in road safety education. By speaking their language—short, visual, mobile-first content—we create an approachable, modern way to reinforce core driving skills and values.
Many traditional driving instruction methods struggle to capture the attention of today’s digitally native generation, resulting in poor retention of safety-critical knowledge. We're addressing this problem by creating short, practical, and visually engaging videos that directly address common driving mistakes and safety misconceptions.
Their content focuses on real-world driving scenarios that learners often find difficult—such as hazard perception, proper use of mirrors, navigation through complex junctions, safe following distances, and dealing with distractions and stress. These videos also tackle challenges specific to urban environments, such as interactions with cyclists, pedestrians, and aggressive drivers.
Another major issue addressed is the lack of access to consistent quality education outside the driving lessons. By using platforms like TikTok, YouTube, and Instagram, the project brings road safety education and awareness directly to learners' daily digital environments, reinforcing good habits through repetition and familiarity.
Our approach helps bridge the gap between theory and practice, while contributing to a culture of safety among young drivers across Europe.

At Grupo Santalucía and its Agency Network, we are concerned about accidents caused by mobility and road safety issues.

Since 2021, we have gone beyond the business sphere of the Group. We aim to extend our concern, means, and resources to society, with a special focus on older adults, to raise awareness and educate senior citizens about road risks they face, especially in cities as pedestrians. We also want to make them protagonists of the change through active listening to their requests as road users, with the aim of improving mobility and safety in their environments.

To this end, we began senior road safety campaigns in 2021. The challenges we encountered and that shape the mobility of this group include:

7 out of 10 seniors live in cities with more than 10,000 inhabitants.

Walking is a common form of travel among older adults.

Psychomotor conditions can lead to incidents during travel.

40% of traffic fatalities occur in urban areas.

Of those, 69% are pedestrian fatalities.

The fatality rate in these accidents is 4.2 times higher than for the rest of the population, rising to 9.2 for those over 85.

There is a large number of safe driving courses for drivers on polygons in the Czech Republic. Drivers are taught how to react when driving in poor conditions, while being in the safe environment of a closed polygon area. It prepares them for safer driving in traffic. However, these courses are only available to drivers without significant medical limitations.

In the Czech Republic people with hearing impairment or physical disabilities are also able to drive. Until recently, there were no safe driving courses for people with disabilities and therefore they did not have the same training opportunities as drivers without ones. Thus, in regular traffic there is a group of drivers interested in safety education that is not available to them. Because of that they put themselves and those around them at greater risk.

Driving calmly and without stress should be possible for every driver, regardless of the external driving conditions. Safe driving courses allow the driver to experience dangerous situations and then not be afraid of them in regular traffic. These courses should be available to all groups of drivers that are active participants in traffic: including drivers with disabilities, who currently often face hidden barriers just entering driving schools. Platforma VIZE 0, which has been devoted to drivers’ education for a long time, has taken this education gap under its wing by creating the Courses for Drivers with Disabilities. By organising these courses, a database of participants is created. These participants not only actively improve their driving skills but also provide valuable feedback. It helps to expose discriminatory attitudes in the current system of training future and current drivers, such as admission to driving schools etc. The courses then serve as the starting point on the way to developing a new methodology for working with drivers with disabilities: from adjustments in teaching and instructors' approach to recommendations for final exams. The methodology will make life easier not only for those with disabilities but also for instructors in driving schools.

The aim of determining fitness to drive is to achieve a balance between minimising any driving-related road safety risks for the individual and the community and maintaining the driver’s lifestyle and employment-related mobility independence. Driving a car is a complex and dynamic task and there is a wide range of conditions that temporarily affect the ability to drive safely like consuming substances or fatigue. Professional drivers are particularly affected by fatigue. The main effect of fatigue is a progressive withdrawal of attention from the road and traffic demands leading to impaired driving performance. The particular practice of professional drivers include working long hours, prolonged night work, working irregular hours, little or poor sleep, and early starting times which in many cases lead to fatigue. Fatigue causes reduced alertness, longer reaction times, memory problems, poorer psychometric coordination, and less efficient information processing. The results of different surveys world-wide show that over 50% of long-haul drivers have at some time almost fallen asleep at the wheel.

One of the main road safety challenges we are addressing is the complete absence of mandatory motorway or expressway driving in the Polish driving license curriculum. As a result, many drivers encounter high-speed roads for the first time without any preparation, often leading to stress, poor decisions, and unsafe behaviour. This gap poses a serious risk not only to the new drivers themselves but also to other road users.
To address this, Autostrada Wielkopolska launched a groundbreaking, original programme that offers drivers the opportunity to practice motorway driving under the supervision of experienced driving school instructors. The aim is to build awareness, confidence, and responsibility when driving on high-speed roads. During practical sessions, learners train essential manoeuvres such as overtaking, lane changing, and merging into traffic.
We also focus on correcting the most frequent mistakes made by Polish drivers on motorways, such as inappropriate speed adjustment, lack of concentration, and failure to maintain a safe following distance. Participants are taught to communicate planned manoeuvres clearly, reduce speed before exits, and drive with foresight and consideration for others.
In addition, the programme promotes a broader road safety culture by educating drivers about trip planning, the importance of rest and breaks, and responsible parking—creating a new generation of drivers who are prepared to drive safely and knowledgeably on any European road.

Low Awareness and Misuse of Child Restraint Systems (CRS)
Despite legislation requiring child car seats, many children in Romania travel unrestrained or improperly secured. The event highlights the importance of proper CRS selection and installation, using crash simulations and expert demonstrations to correct misconceptions and promote evidence-based practices (e.g., extended rear-facing travel).

High Risk Among Young and Inexperienced Drivers
Adolescents and newly licensed drivers are overrepresented in serious road crashes due to inexperience, distraction (especially smartphone use), alcohol or drug influence, and fatigue. The event uses VR simulations and interactive sessions to show real consequences, helping young drivers internalize the impact of their decisions behind the wheel.

Vulnerable Road Users: Pedestrians and Cyclists
Children and teens are especially vulnerable as pedestrians and cyclists, often due to low visibility, risky crossings, and lack of road safety education. Through distorted-vision simulations (alcohol, cannabis, fatigue), the event raises empathy and awareness about the fragility of vulnerable road users and the need for responsible behaviour from all traffic participants.

Parental Misconceptions and Risk Normalization
Many parents underestimate the consequences of everyday traffic choices—such as holding a child in their lap or disabling safety systems for comfort. Our activities directly engage parents through emotional storytelling, live demonstrations, and one-on-one safety consultations.

Lack of Intersectoral Collaboration in Road Safety Education
Road safety is often treated in silos (e.g., enforcement without education). This event brings together NGOs, emergency services, police, international road safety experts, and civil society in a unified effort to educate, engage, and empower local communities.

Gaps in Road Safety Education in Schools and Public Campaigns
Formal education on road safety is inconsistent and often outdated. Our project develops modern, engaging, and scalable tools (e.g., VR technology, interactive workshops) that can be replicated in schools and youth programs.

With this project, we contribute to the development of courses by offering standardized, consistent quality for various risk groups.
To provide substantive expertise through a new technical solution. This solution simplifies the explanation of complex traffic risks.

According to the data from the European Commission, in 2023 Bulgaria is ranked first in casualties in the Road safety statistics in the EU. In previous years we were second after Romania, which shows that an already bad situation is getting worse.

Over the last 20 years, almost 20,000 people have died and more than 220,000 have been injured, which worsens the demographic problems facing Bulgaria, which ranks first also in the world in terms of population decline!

It is self-evident that road accidents can never be fully eliminated. As normal people and drivers, we accept them as inevitability when they happen due to unforeseeable factors such as infrastructure deficiencies, drivers’ sudden health issue, a person unexpectedly jumping out onto the road, etc.
However, we cannot accept that for decades Bulgarian children and young people have been brutally executed by drivers under the influence of alcohol or drugs, by ones driving over the speed limit and by such driving with blatant disregard for the law and the safety of self and others! Most of them are habitual offenders who have previously committed dozens or even hundreds of traffic violations and even accidents without being sanctioned at all! If they had been held accountable by the law, our children, grandchildren, brothers, sisters and cousins would not have been killed! Even after the road killings, such people often receive either suspended sentences or minimal actual imprisonment and then they continue with their criminal behaviour! These kind of sentences are pronounced for tragic accidents in which between 1 and 6 children and young people are killed!

At RoadMaster VR, we focus on solving some of the most pressing road safety challenges in the logistics and transport sector. One of the key problems we address is the lack of real-world readiness among new and inexperienced truck drivers. Traditional training often falls short in preparing drivers for critical, high-risk scenarios - such as low visibility, sudden obstacles, maneuvering, or poor road conditions - without exposing them to actual danger.

Another major issue is the inconsistency in training quality across companies and regions. Our VR-based platform ensures standardized, repeatable, and high-quality training experiences for all drivers, regardless of location or instructor.

We also tackle the challenge of low engagement and knowledge retention in conventional training methods. VR simulations significantly increase driver involvement, attention, and retention of critical safety procedures by allowing them to actively experience and respond to real-world situations.

Finally, by collecting and analyzing performance data, we identify high-risk behaviors early and provide personalized feedback - helping drivers improve faster and more effectively.

In short, RoadMaster VR enhances driver preparedness, reduces risk on the road, and supports transport companies in building a safer, more efficient workforce.

Video about RoadMaster VR - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rEd8uxqYoAs