SOTERIA · Systematic and orchestrated deployment of safety solutions in complex urban environments for ageing and vulnerable societies

The emergence of complex urban mobility environments where unknown interactions between different types of vulnerable road users (VRUs) and between VRUs and motorised vehicles poses the need for a clear understanding of user behaviours, fair and optimised use of public spaces as well as age friendly urban safety action plans and assessments, capitalising on the benefits that technological innovations and the plethora of available data can offer in advanced accident analysis, towards achieving EU’s ‘Vision Zero’ for zero fatalities in road transport by 2050. SOTERIA aims to accelerate the attainment of this Vision for VRUs through a holistic framework of innovative models, tools and services that enable data driven urban safety intelligence, facilitate safe travelling of VRUs and foster the safe integration of micro-mobility services in complex environments. At the operational level SOTERIA uncovers unexplored behavioural characteristics of VRUs and engages Living Lab communities in social innovation activities for the co-creation of urban safety solutions and infrastructure designs. Simulation models and explainable AI driven analytics are developed for supporting policy decisions and informing interconnected services that support VRUs in safe and clean travelling. On-vehicle sensors and connectivity are fostered enabling minimisation of risky situations and behaviours. The approach is validated in four thematic demonstrations and through the SOTERIA network of eight cities, addressing different types of VRUs.