The Project Road Safety initiative achieved a significant milestone by hosting an insightful and impactful national conference titled “Leveraging Smart Technologies and Policy Interventions for Road Safety”. The event, organized by the Zaman Research Center (ZRC) at the School of Sociology, Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad.

Technology experts, researchers, representatives the from various universities attended the event. Prof. Dr. Niaz Akhtar (S.I.) Vice Chancellor, Quaid-i-Azam University attended the event as the guest of honor.

Dr. Sadia, Director of the School of Sociology, inaugurated the event and briefed the audience regarding tireless efforts of Dr. Muhammad Zaman and his team for successfully completing the GCF-744 Road Safety project.

Dr. Hammad Majeed, Professor at FAST University, Islamabad, discussed innovative approaches to crowdsourcing data to identify irregularities in road surfaces.

Dr. Omer Qureshi, CEO of ADCR, delivered a compelling presentation on road crash investigations, emphasizing that accurate investigations lead to effective preventive measures that save lives. Dr. John Njenga Karugia from Humboldt University provided a comparative analysis of transportation modes across different parts of the world.

Six parallel sessions were held simultaneously across six venues, each focusing on a distinct topic and chaired by highly skilled experts. The first session, chaired by Dr. Rabeeh Ayaz Abbasi, Department of Computer Science, QAU, explored AI-Powered Traffic Management and Infrastructure Optimization with six presenters.

The second session, led by Dr. Hammad Majeed, focused on the Sustainability of Urban Transport Systems and included six presenters. In the third session, Dr. Rehan Ahmed chaired discussions on Measuring On-Road Air Pollution to Reduce Vehicle Carbon Emissions, featuring five presenters. The fourth session, under Dr. Hassan Shahzad, addressed Social Research, Advocacy, and Lobbying for Effective Legislation with five presenters. Dr. Sadia Jabeen led the fifth session on Transportation and Society, which included six presenters. The sixth session, chaired by Dr. John Njenga Karugia, examined Urban Sprawl and Its Effects on Road Safety and Traffic Flow with four presenters.

The concluding session featured a comprehensive overview of the GCF-744 project’s work plans, presented by academic collaborators, including Dr. Rehan Ahmed from ITU Lahore, Dr. Qasim Imtiaz from LUMS Lahore, Dr. Sadia Jabeen from Ibadat University, Dr. Abdul Waheed from NUST, and Professor Dr. Rabeeh Ayaz Abbasi from the Department of Computer Science at Quaid-i-Azam University.

In his address, Professor Dr. Niaz Akhtar, Vice Chancellor, praised the exceptional efforts of Professor Dr. Muhammad Zaman, his team, and all collaborators for the successful execution of this remarkable project. He highlighted the project’s strength in its diverse approach, seamlessly integrating technical and social aspects of road safety. Dr. Sadia officially closed the conference, expressing gratitude to all participants. Certificates and souvenirs were distributed to presenters and attendees.