Over 40000 people killed and 1700000 injured each year, this is the sad testimony to the lack of safety on the roads in the EU. The European Commission will not accept this carnage, and is backing the Member States in their efforts to put an end to this tragedy. In the European Road Safety Action Programme 2003-2010 which it is presenting today, the Commission is pursuing an ambitious overall objective, that of halving the number of people killed on the roads by 2010. With this initiative, the Commission is seeking to guide action by the EU in the field of road safety, complement the Member States' efforts and define a clear framework for the sharing of responsibilities between all the parties concerned. In particular, it wants to encourage users to behave better, make vehicles safer, and improve road infrastructure. In addition, the Commission will continue to enforce and promote new measures aimed at safe and high-quality commercial road transport, while promoting the harmonisation of penalties across Europe. "Saving human life through a genuine road safety policy is a challenge and an obligation, and all the public authorities should work together to this end: it is high time that, at all levels, actions are commensurate with intentions" said Loyola de Palacio, Vice-President of the European Commission with special responsibility for transport and energy. "For its part, the Commission will shoulder its responsibilities and will not hesitate to make all necessary proposals to make it possible to radically change the trends observable in many countries." The Commission's proposal to halve the number of people killed on the roads by 2010 is much more than a legal requirement: it is a political commitment on the part of all those involved in road safety. The European Road Safety Action Programme presented today takes stock of the actions to be implemented in order to achieve this objective. (Author/publisher)
Samenvatting