One in three road accidents in Slovenia is caused by failing to observe a safe distance. An innovation system sets out to address this problem by warning motorists in real time when they get too close to the vehicle in front. Two safety distance warning systems will be made available to municipalities for the first time this year as part of the national “Together for Road Safety” project. For the ninth year in a row, Zavarovalnica Triglav, via their well-established preventive campaign, are inviting local communities, to apply for co-financing for road safety improvement schemes in their local areas.
The first smart system was installed by the MIPA company in Škofja Loka in 2021. It was very well received by drivers, with data showing that it has been successful in changing driving habits. Two systems will be available to municipalities this year under the “Together for Road Safety” campaign. The call for applications is open until the end of March.
Practice shows that smart traffic systems can prevent up to 80% of accidents on road sections where visibility is poor and significantly reduce the proportion of speeding drivers in towns and villages, all without the need for major new infrastructure. “For almost a decade, Triglav have been working actively with local communities on road safety. We want to offer them the very best technological solutions, ones capable of improving accident statistics at the most vulnerable points without the need for major infrastructure interventions. This helps to ensure that drivers, pedestrians and other road users are not only well protected but also safer on their everyday journeys,” said Ana Cergolj Kebler, head of safe mobility projects at Zavarovalnica Triglav.
In the past few years, Slovenia’s biggest insurer has installed 93 “Your Speed” displays in collaboration with municipalities across the country. Since their appearance, the proportion of speeding drivers has fallen almost everywhere. The speed indicator displays draw drivers’ attention to the speed at which they should be driving, and, at the same time, stores and processes traffic data, which can then be viewed on the www.vi-vozite.si website. Twelve speed indicator displays are up for grabs in this year’s call for applications, which opens on 7 March.
80% fewer accidents
The 70 COPS systems installed to date have proved to be a highly effective solution for built-up areas. They prevent collisions at three types of critical section: where visibility is poor (COPS@road), at pedestrian crossings (COPS@zebra) and at level crossings (COPS@rail). The number of accidents on these critical sections has fallen sharply since the COPS systems were installed, including at level crossings. Twenty-four of the systems already installed around Slovenia have been monitored by Triglav, who found that no fatalities at level crossings were recorded in the year after their installation and that pedestrians were now being more careful when crossing the road at marked crossings. This year’s call for applications offers municipalities a total of at least 12 COPS@rail, COPS@road and COPS@zebra systems.
DRAJV helps identify the most problematic locations
For the second year in a row, Slovenia’s biggest insurance company will also use data collected through the DRAJV app, which is regularly used by more than 60,000 users on a monthly basis and records an average of more than 20,000 journeys per day, when awarding points to an application.
"In 2022, DRAJV users travelled a total of almost 280 million (safer) kilometres. Based on spatial analysis conducted using data from locations where speeding occurred, which is collected by DRAJV in anonymised form, we found out that speed limits were being exceeded more frequently at certain road sections. DRAJV users therefore help to identify the most dangerous road sections, thereby helping to improve road safety for all road users," explained Boštjan Kop from the digital platform department at Zavarovalnica Triglav.
The call for applications for the co-funding of road safety improvement schemes has been or will shortly be published on the MIPA, Sipronics and COPS systems sites, along with all the relevant documentation and the application form. The deadline for applications for the latest call for proposals is 10 April.
