Roads & Transport Authority - News Details

His Excellency Mattar Al Tayer, Director General, Chairman of the Board of Executive Directors of the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) launched the 56th International Commission for Driver Testing (CIECA) Congress, themed: “Smart Driving in Future Cities.” This event  takes place for the first time in the Middle East and North Africa. 

Attendees of the opening session of the Congress, which was held at the Dubai World Trade Centre, included His Excellency Pat Delaney, President of CIECA, and several CEOs and Directors at various national and international driver licensing agencies and organisations, alongside CIECA staff, driving institutes, UAE universities, and over 600 delegates. The congress held 16 parallel sessions featuring 16 international speakers including Professor Christoph Stiller of the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology in Germany. 

The congress delved into key topics, including drivers & teacher education, managing risk, road safety, the refinement of testing methods, technology issues, and the developments of training curricula. The congress is accompanied by showcasing  the latest ground-breaking technologies in driver training and qualification, reflecting the latest trends in road traffic safety standards.

His Excellency Pat Delaney conveyed his immense delight at attending the landmark 56th CIECA Congress held for the first time in the vibrant city of Dubai, UAE.

“The  other main theme of this year’s gathering is Preparing Drivers for Smart Mobility and Road Safety. This edition is momentous and serves as a magnificent gateway for diverse participants from various authorities, institutions, and specialised organisations around the world to interact with the event and derive the utmost value from its array of sessions, workshops, and activities, with a special focus on those initiatives that significantly contribute to the enhancement of road safety, as safety remains our utmost concern at CIECA,” noted Delaney. 

Automated Vehicles 

Professor Dr. Christoph Stiller of the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology in Germany made a visually engaging presentation entitled: Enhancing Safety in the Era of Automated Vehicles. “The emergence of automated vehicles on our roadways heralds a transformative era of mobility, urging us to focus on their safety implications of automated vehicles, highlighting the pivotal role video, lidar, and radar sensors in capturing a spectrum of multimodal information from the vehicle’s surroundings. High-definition digital maps further enrich this data, enabling the vehicle to construct a comprehensive model of the real world. Through situational awareness, the vehicle predicts  a variety of potential future scenarios, laying a groundwork for independent and secure planning and execution of movements to ensure a safe and comfortable traffic flow,” stated Stiller. 

“Central to these advancements are the core methodologies rooted in artificial intelligence -perception, scene understanding, and motion planning. A critical aspect explored in this talk is the profound impact of training data on the performance of these methodologies. Additionally, emphasis is placed on safety architectures of the vehicle and its integration into an automation eco-system. Last, not least, the talk sketches field evaluation methodologies of safety promises, as another crucial element in ensuring the reliability and security of automated systems,” added Prof Stiller.

His Excellency Mattar Al Tayer honoured His Excellency Pat Delaney, the President of CIECA, and Professor Christoph Stiller of Karlsruhe Institute of Technology in Germany. He also recognised the sponsors of the congress: Eco Drive Driving Institute, Dubai Driving Center, and Galadari Motor Driving Center, alongside the Emirates National Oil Company (ENOC). 

For his part, His Excellency Pat Delaney, President of the International Commission for Driver Testing Congress (CIECA) honored His Excellency Mattar Al Tayer, Director-General, Chairman of the Board of Executive Directors of the Roads and Transport Authority, in appreciation of the RTA’s role as an effective member of (CIECA) in 2023.

Cooperation Agreement

On the sidelines of the congress, His Excellency Mattar Al Tayer witnessed the signing of a cooperation agreement between RTA and CIECA. The document was endorsed by Abdulla Yousef Al Ali, CEO of RTA’s Licensing Agency, and His Excellency Pat Delaney, President of CIECA. This agreement aims to foster collaboration and share expertise between the two parties.

Congress Patrons

This event is supported by several RTA's partners at driving institutes, namely: Eco Drive, Dubai Driving Center, Galadari Motor Driving School, Belhasa Driving Center, Excellence Driving School, Emirates Driving Institute, and Al Ahli Driving Center in addition to the Emirates National Oil Company (ENOC). 

Accompanying Workshops and Activities

The 56th CIECA Congress is accompanied by various workshops and activities, reflecting the core objectives of both CIECA and RTA. Eddy Klynen, a renowned road safety expert from Belgium, curated a workshop for RTA's driving examiners entitled “Migrating from a Driving Examiner to a Driving Evaluator.” Klynen also hosted a session "Migrating from Driving Instructor to Driving Mentor" designed for managers of training sections and training officers in driving institutes.

About CIECA

Based in Brussels, Belgium, the International Commission for Driver Testing, known as CIECA, is an international organisation for driver testing and specialises in assessments of drivers and road safety. It aims to curriculum development and traffic safety. CIECA has 69 members spanning 38 countries, with RTA holding full membership for over 10 years.