Conference “Practical Issues of Road Safety” in Lagów, Poland
On 6th and 7th June 2019 the 4th Conference “Practical Issues of Road Safety” took place in Lagów (Poland). Mr Johannes Vogel as representative of the Chair of Transport System Planning held a presentation about “Traffic accidents as a result of deficits in planning and design in urban areas” and also received a letter of honor on behalf of the former head of the chair, Mr Ulrich Brannolte.
The conference brings together representatives from science, politics and industry and aims to present the current state of road safety in Poland as well as suitable measures for national and regional authorities to improve road safety. The most important thematic blocks were:
- Current situation and forecast of road safety in Poland,
- Behavior of road users as a factor of influence on road safety,
- Impact of transport infrastructure on road safety,
- Innovative materials, technologies and processes as factors of influence on road safety.
As a strategic partner and due to the long and good relations with Uniwersytet Zielonogórski, the Chair of Transport System Planning was invited to the conference. On behalf of Prof. Plank-Wiedenbeck, who was member of the program committee, Mr Johannes Vogel accepted the invitation to Lagów. In addition to the assessment of various issues discussed during the conference, Mr Vogel also gave a lecture on “Traffic accidents as a result of deficits in planning and design in urban areas”. He illustrated typical safety deficits in urban areas and showed many examples of how bad planning can lead to accidents and conflicts. He focused especially on deficits in pedestrian and bicycle traffic management.
A special highlight was also the presentation of a letter of honor for Prof. Ulrich Brannolte, former head of the Chair of Transport System Planning, which was - on his behalf - received by Mr Vogel. At the beginning of the 2000s, Mr Brannolte rendered a great service to the introduction of road safety audits in Germany. Since Zielona Góra is one of three training centers for safety auditors in Poland, good contacts existed between the two universities at an early stage. Mr Brannolte tried to support the training of Polish auditors with the findings from Germany and was decisively involved in the further development of the training courses. Prof. Adam Wysokowski, Head of the Road and Bridges Department at the Uniwersytet Zielonogórski, presented Prof. Brannolte with that letter of honor in gratitude.