On 29 March, 28 EU ministers of transport issued a strongly worded Declaration on Road Safety intended to re-invigorate the activities in Europe in this area. In recent years, there has been stagnation in the annual reduction of road deaths; the EU is falling off track from its goal to cut road deaths in half by 2020. FIA Region I supports the Member States’ endeavour to take concrete action on improving road safety. This can be achieved by making sure that the General Safety Regulation is revised swiftly and before early 2018, as currently planned. With specific targets and improvements in vehicle technologies, this legislation needs to be implemented as soon as possible. The document also cites the need to improve road user behaviour through life-long llearning, an initiative that FIA Region I and its Clubs have been actively supporting.

FIA President Jean Todt, who also serves as the United Nations Secretary General’s Special Envoy for Road Safety, said: “I welcome the adoption of today’s declaration, and congratulate Commissioner Bulc and the Maltese Presidency for taking the initiative to organise this Ministerial conference. While great progress has been made in Europe over recent decades, new impetus is urgently needed if we are to meet the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals’ target to halve fatalities and injuries by 2020.”

FIA Region I Director General, Laurianne Krid, said: “Progress has effectively halted for road safety in Europe. The commitment by ministers today to make all possible efforts to improve safety is very good news. We look forward to a swift proposal to amend the General Safety Regulation, as some new technologies have the potential to make the difference that is urgently needed now.”

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Read the declaration

Read the FIA Region I policy position on the General Safety Regulation (720.2 KB)

About FIA Region I

The FIA Region I office, based in Brussels, is a consumer body representing 111 Motoring and Touring Clubs and their 38 million members from across Europe, the Middle East and Africa. The FIA represents the interest of these members as motorists, public transport users, pedestrians and tourists. The FIA’s primary goal is to secure a mobility that is safe, affordable, sustainable and efficient. With these aims in mind, FIA Region I’s work focuses on Road Safety, Consumer Protection, Environmental Protection, and the promotion of Sustainable Motoring. www.fiaregion1.com