100 European Union road safety experts have met at the European Transport Safety Council’s (ETSC) Safety Lunch to discuss new 2020 targets in advance of the European Commission’s 4th Road Safety Action Program,
which is expected to be published this spring.
The ETSC is a Brussels-based, independent organisation dedicated to reducing the number and severity of transport crashes in Europe. The ETSC identifies and promotes research-based measures with a high safety potential. It brings together 43 national and international organisations concerned with transport safety from across Europe.
There has been a 28% reduction in European road deaths between 2001 and 2008. If current trends continue, road deaths are likely to fall by a third in 2010. The ETSC stresses that the adoption of the target in 2001 was essential in reducing the number of deaths. The opportunity to further reduce this by 2020 should not be missed. The ETSC’s proposal to reduce road deaths and – for the first time – serious injuries by 40% between 2010 and 2020 was presented by Professor Richard Allsop.
Other possible avenues include the application of new life-saving technologies, such as intelligent speed assistance or the introduction of improved post accident care with eCall. The measures included in the ETSC’s Blueprint, if implemented extensively, will allow the EU to achieve new targets in the future.
