On 23 September 2021, the project consortium Road Risk Assessment in the Danube Area (RADAR) held the project’s Final Conference, under the theme “Fighting for Safer Infrastructure for All Road Users in the Danube Area.” The event was organized in a hybrid format, bringing together online participants alongside in-person attendees in Bled, Slovenia.

More than 160 road safety experts and representatives from the road infrastructure safety sector in the Danube region, as well as other transport stakeholders from around the world, registered for the RADAR Final Conference. The event was organized under the auspices of the Slovenian Presidency of the Council of the EU and in cooperation with the EU Strategy for the Danube Region (EUSDR) – Priority Area 1b: Improving Mobility and Multimodality – Road, Rail and Air Links.

The conference provided a valuable platform for road safety organizations and experts to discuss and outline future strategic directions focused on improving road infrastructure safety in the Danube region, for the benefit of all road users.

A large part of the Danube road network has a low safety rating, and fatality rates in many countries are higher than the EU average. Many countries lack sufficient professional capacity, and approaches to road safety challenges vary significantly. Franc Žepič, Coordinator for the EU Strategy for the Danube Region, emphasized that “the Danube region faces a range of challenges – from different driving cultures and the quality of road infrastructure to vehicle safety. These issues must be addressed to reduce the road safety gap. We need to cooperate, coordinate, promote successful actions, exchange good practices, and join forces to secure additional funding.”

“Improving road infrastructure is the cornerstone of road safety.”

The conference brought together 20 global road safety stakeholders to highlight the results of the RADAR project and to demonstrate the benefits of a systematic approach to safer road infrastructure. The event also contributed to discussions on prioritizing investments in road safety and conducting network-wide road safety assessments in line with the revised RISM Directive and broader policy frameworks. In addition, the conference underlined the importance of working towards the implementation of both United Nations and European Commission road safety targets.