About the project
Road safety is one of the major challenges of the modern world. More than 1.3 million road fatalities annually worldwide, constituting the main cause of death of young people (up to 25 years of age) and an increasing proportion of elderly among victims, is a sufficient argument to take radical remedial action.
In Europe, the road infrastructure safety management system (RISM) has been implemented and developed as part of comprehensive efforts to improve road safety. The first EU Directive2008/96/EC stipulated mandatory coverage of only the TEN-T network. The new Directive 2019/1936/EC (Directive) covers all national roads and all other roads the construction or reconstruction of which will be financed or co-financed by the EU. The effectiveness of implementing the Directive relies primarily on preparing dedicated safety management staff. These specialists must be highly competent in both theoretical and practical aspects of road safety. Due to large gaps in technical university curricula in the road safety area, future staff of road authorities will not be fully prepared for challenges that are imposed by the Directive. In addition, staff already engaged in RISM must constantly supplement their knowledge and gain new experience in this field. This will allow for a permanent increase in their competence, which will contribute to the increase of the level of RISM and consequently decrease the number of accidents and victims.
Road safety is an area that combines various disciplines: engineering, mechanics, psychology, sociology, and others. It is also an area undergoing constant changes (e.g., the emergence of a new risk group, the elderly). Therefore, it requires the adaptation of methods, tools, and actions to improve the safety of road users. Due to the wide variation in the level of road safety in European countries and diverse experience of good and bad practice, international cooperation is needed to exchange experiences, to standardise the implementation of high safety norms through appropriate methods and tools. Three factors: interdisciplinarity, variability, and international cooperation force the undertaking of actions to improve education and increase expertise and competences. The EuroS@P project will raise the level of teaching and training, using innovative didactic materials that will be widely available.
Project objectives
The main objective of the EuroS@P project is to promote the best educational solutions in the RISM area, with increase of awareness and knowledge of road safety, by:
1) Developing an e-learning platform with access to project products,
2) The development of teaching and training materials dedicated to conducting classes at universities and training courses for RISM staff,
3) Raising competences and skills in RISM, by changing curricula at universities and equipping students and staff with didactic materials based on innovative RISM methods and tools,
4) Creating the foundations for Road Safety Professional Certification (RSP),
5) The development of a lasting relationship and the continuation of active international cooperation between project partners with the possibility of its extension to other institutions.
Project Partners