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Professor Yannis giving lecture on digital road safety

18 Sep 2019

New seminar series discusses autonomous vehicles and road safety

The Research and Innovation in Safe and Smart Mobility (RISSM) have launched a series of seminars which aims to discuss a variety of topics surrounding autonomous vehicles and road safety.

The next seminar will take place on 26 September at the Design School from 12.30pm-1.30pm and will look at a ‘real-word approach to autonomous vehicle safety’, led by Ruth Welsh.

Autonomous vehicles are rapidly becoming a reality with many demonstration projects underway in the UK. Some are designed to replace services such as delivery vans and some are new services, including last-mile travel around airports or university campuses.

People often expect these to be safer than humans as they will not experience fatigue or distraction. However, situations such as the ability to have peripheral vision to see a child about to cross a road must be tested.

The seminar aims to showcase two demonstration projects – Capri and RoboPilot – that will show how real-world evidence is being used to inform safety.

The presenter, Ruth Welsh, is a Research Fellow of Transport Safety Research Centre, with 22 years experience in transport safety. She has been a technical advisor for the UK Department of Transport and also leads the University’s contribution to safety assurance of connected and automated vehicles.

The seminar is free to attend and follows the success of the previous seminar entitled ‘digital road safety’.

Pete Thomas, who leads the RISSM said: “These seminars are being organised to bring University researchers up to date with the latest developments in safe and smart mobility.

“They also provide a regular networking opportunity where researchers and other academics can connect.”