As autonomous and connected vehicle technology moves closer to everyday reality, the 2026 National Road Safety Conference will bring together leading voices to examine its implications for road safety, policy and public engagement.
NRSC 2026 is being held at The Queens Hotel in Leeds on 24-25 November. The event is co-sponsored by GEM Motoring Assist, Jenoptik, Smart Start, Waymo and Westcotec.
For the past two years around 400 road safety professionals have attended Road Safety GB’s flagship event, and this year more than 250 people have already booked to do so.
In addition, more than 20 organisations have already signed up to exhibit alongside the conference.
Autonomous and connected vehicle technology has the potential to transform UK roads, with human error currently contributing to 88% of collisions. Its arrival appears imminent, with trials of self-driving taxis set to begin in London later this year.
One of the organisations leading the way in this space is Waymo, who will deliver a headline presentation as part of the session – which has been published on the conference website.
Other presentations selected to feature in the session are:
Interconnectedness Matters: PHOEBE safe system advances and new means for understanding road risk
Delivered by: Dr Sam Chapman, co-founder & director, The Floow
Road safety outcomes are shaped by a complex interaction of behaviour, infrastructure, mobility choices, and socio-economic context. Yet interventions are often designed using isolated approaches, limiting the ability to anticipate unintended consequences or fully understand system-wide risk. This presentation demonstrates how integrated modelling frameworks and new data can better support Safe System approaches in spite of the interconnected nature of transport risk.
Different Drivers, Different Signals: Fatigue and Distraction Detection in Regular vs Professional Emergency Fleet Drivers
Rafael Goncalves, PhD researcher, University of Leeds
As the UK progresses towards wider deployment of partially automated and assisted driving systems, Driver Monitoring Systems (DMS) are becoming a central safety feature. Using in-vehicle cameras to detect signs of distraction and fatigue, these systems are designed to ensure that drivers remain capable of responding appropriately in safety-critical situations. This presentation will examine fatigue and distraction detection in both regular and professional emergency fleet drivers, considering the importance of this for future roll out.
Understanding harsh braking data
Dr Peter Sanders, product portfolio manager, NIRA Dynamics
The rapid emergence of connected vehicle (CV) data is fundamentally transforming road safety analysis, enabling practitioners to combine reactive, collision-based approaches with proactive risk characterisation. In contrast to collision data, which are often incomplete and time delayed, CV data provides network-wide driver behaviour and pavement condition data, updated daily. This presentation provides a CV data-based solution to the harsh braking fail-unsafe condition utilising ABS activation data. It also presents practical use cases, including network-level prioritisation, before-and-after evaluation of infrastructure changes, and continuous safety monitoring.
From strategy to action: delivering KSI reduction through predictive risk analysis
Thierry Casterman, AISIN RoadTrace
This session will present results from a Road Safety Trust funded pilot in Leeds, delivered in partnership with The Road Safety Trust, Leeds City Council, AISIN RoadTrace, Qi Managed Services, Metis and CitiSense. The pilot applies anonymised, large-scale connected vehicle behaviour data to identify locations of elevated risk before collisions occur. Analysis focuses on harsh braking, speed behaviour and conflict indicators across the network, addressing a known limitation of relying solely on historic KSI data, particularly where collision volumes are low or risk is emerging.
More information
For more information about NRSC 2026 please contact either Sally Bartrum (delegate registration) or Nick Rawlings (agenda, exhibition and sponsorship) by email, or alternatively both can be contacted on 01379 650112.
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