During the event, 10 to 20 inter-disciplinary teams will look for solutions to improve safety on Latvia's notoriously dangerous roads and reduce the number of fatal incidents. The event will take place in the Riga Motor Museum and will gather around 100 participants.
"The purpose of the event is to establish an annual tradition – a 24-hour road safety day in the Baltics – with the active participation of society and involvement in the search for innovative solutions to reduce the number of particularly dangerous road traffic accidents in the Baltic countries, using design thinking and creativity methods," said the CSDD in a preview.
"Against the background of European statistics on the deaths in traffic accidents, the situation in Latvia is unfortunately not encouraging. In 2023, the EU had an average of 46 deaths per million inhabitants, the fewest deaths per million inhabitants were in Sweden – 21, and the most in Bulgaria – 82. In only four member states, the number of fatal cases per million inhabitants was equal to or greater than 60, and Latvia is one of them," noted the CSDD.
Pupils, students, researchers, industry experts, non-governmental organizations, local community activists and other interested parties are invited to apply for the hackathon. The event will be held in English to promote international cooperation and attract participants from all over the Baltics.
The teams will be provided with support – available statistical data and important studies and the opportunity to receive advice from experienced mentors who will help develop innovative and sustainable solutions for improving road safety.
The total prize fund is 6,000 EUR. Teams will be judged by an experienced jury based on criteria such as the team's progress during the hackathon, idea implementation and impact on traffic quality, potential to prevent fatalities, scalability, innovation and sustainability. The best offers of the teams will be handed over to representatives of the Ministry of Transport for further evaluation and the teams will be given feedback on the possibilities of implementing the proposed ideas.
More information and application forms are available at https://www.roadhack24.com/
