We are proud to announce that Professor Cristina Olaverri-Monreal will be joining the ICTCT 2026 Conference as a keynote speaker, bringing her extensive expertise in intelligent transport systems, human factors, and connected mobility.
Professor Olaverri-Monreal is a Full Professor and Head of the Department of Intelligent Transport Systems at the Johannes Kepler University Linz, Austria. With a distinguished international career spanning both academia and industry across the United States and Europe, she is widely recognized as a leading authority in the field of intelligent transportation and automated mobility systems.
Her global impact is further reflected in her leadership roles within IEEE. She currently serves as the IEEE Division IX Director and is a member of the 2026–2027 IEEE Board of Directors. Previously, she held the position of President of the IEEE Intelligent Transportation Systems Society (IEEE ITSS) for 2022 and 2023. In addition, she chairs the Technical Activities Committee (TAC) on Human Factors in Intelligent Transportation Systems and is the founder and chair of the Austrian IEEE ITSS Chapter. She is also actively involved in academic publishing as a senior and associate editor, as well as an editorial board member of leading journals, including IEEE Transactions on Intelligent Transportation Systems and IEEE ITS Magazine.
Professor Olaverri-Monreal obtained her PhD from Ludwig-Maximilians University (LMU) in Munich, in collaboration with BMW. Her research focuses on developing efficient, user-centered transportation systems by reducing the gap between road users and infrastructure. Her work integrates automation, wireless communication, and sensing technologies within the broader domain of Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS).
Beyond academia, she is a recognized expert for the European Commission in the area of Automated Road Transport and serves as a consultant and project evaluator for ICT and Connected, Cooperative, and Autonomous Mobility Systems across multiple European countries. Her contributions to the field have been widely acknowledged, including serving as General Chair of the IEEE International Conference on Vehicle Electronics and Safety (ICVES 2017).
Her excellence has been recognized through several prestigious awards, including the IEEE Educational Activities Board Meritorious Achievement Award in Continuing Education and the 2023 IEEE MGA Diversity & Inclusion Award, highlighting both her technical contributions and her commitment to inclusive innovation.
Keynote Title
Safer Roads: Integrating Human Behaviour, Automation, and Data-Driven Systems
Abstract
As automation and data-driven technologies continue to transform transportation, they offer significant potential to reduce accidents and improve traffic efficiency. However, these advancements also introduce new challenges related to human–machine interaction, trust, and system reliability.
In this keynote, Professor Olaverri-Monreal will explore how human factors and connected automated systems can be jointly leveraged to enhance safety in increasingly complex traffic environments. Drawing on cutting-edge research in cooperative perception, driver behaviour, and real-world validation, she will present insights into emerging solutions such as simulation-based safety assessment and V2X-enabled coordination.
The presentation will outline an integrated approach in which technology and human behaviour are co-designed, ultimately contributing to safer, more resilient, and more efficient mobility systems.