{"id":723,"date":"2026-04-19T18:55:07","date_gmt":"2026-04-19T16:55:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/site.nord.no\/trafikklab\/?p=723"},"modified":"2026-04-19T19:27:44","modified_gmt":"2026-04-19T17:27:44","slug":"using-driving-simulators-to-build-safer-drivers-trafikklab-at-the-trafikksikkerhetskonferansen-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/site.nord.no\/trafikklab\/2026\/04\/19\/using-driving-simulators-to-build-safer-drivers-trafikklab-at-the-trafikksikkerhetskonferansen-2026\/","title":{"rendered":"Using Driving Simulators to Build Safer Drivers: TRAFIKKLAB at the Trafikksikkerhetskonferansen 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

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The Trafikksikkerhetskonferansen 2026, organized as always in Oslo by Trygg Trafikk, brought together researchers, practitioners, educators, and policymakers with a shared goal: improving road safety through knowledge, innovation, and collaboration. During the conference, TRAFIKKLAB<\/strong> had the opportunity to contribute by presenting how simulation technologies are used in both driver education<\/strong> and traffic safety research<\/strong>, and how these tools are shaping the future of mobility training.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why Simulation Matters in Driver Training<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

One of the central questions addressed in the presentation was simple but crucial: why should we use simulators in driver education and research?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Simulation makes it possible to expose drivers and students to critical, rare, and potentially dangerous traffic situations<\/strong>\u2014such as emergency maneuvers, high cognitive workload, system failures, or severe weather conditions\u2014without creating real risk for people or infrastructure. Many of these scenarios are either impossible or unethical to reproduce in real traffic, yet they are essential for learning and safety research.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From an educational perspective, simulators support experience\u2011based learning<\/strong>, allowing learners to make decisions, experience consequences, and reflect on their actions in a controlled environment. When combined with clear learning objectives, structured guidance, and proper briefing and debriefing<\/strong>, the simulator becomes a powerful pedagogical tool\u2014not a game, but a learning environment designed to build risk awareness and decision\u2011making skills.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

An important message shared during the conference was that extreme realism is not always necessary<\/strong>. In many cases, static or medium\u2011fidelity simulators are sufficient to achieve learning outcomes, while also reducing costs and minimizing simulator sickness. The true value of simulation lies not in the hardware itself, but in how the technology is used<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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When Driving Becomes a Laboratory<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

From a research perspective, driving simulators offer something that real\u2011world studies rarely can: full control and repeatability<\/strong>. Traffic density, road layout, weather, vehicle characteristics, automation levels, and critical events can all be precisely defined and reproduced across drivers, groups, and even countries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This level of control allows researchers to collect objective and high\u2011resolution data<\/strong>, and to combine driving performance measures with eye\u2011tracking, questionnaires, and vehicle data. In this sense, the simulator turns driving into a laboratory experiment, producing reproducible knowledge rather than isolated observations<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n