Brussels, 03/02/2011 (Agence Europe) - On Tuesday 1st February, Vice-President of the European Commission and Commissioner for Transport Siim Kallas awarded prizes for excellence to organisations that have undertaken specific commitments to reduce the number of road fatalities in their communities. Prizes were awarded to seven organisations in five different categories. In the large businesses category, Tesco dotcom, the world's largest web based grocery home delivery company in the UK, is committed to reducing road accidents through a prevention and training programme addressed to company drivers. In the small and medium-sized enterprises category, Busturas, a transport service provider in Lithuania, is committed to check regularly its bus drivers' knowledge of traffic rules and to carry out frequent roadworthiness tests on Busturas buses. In the associations/federations category, the Irish Medical Organisation, a representative body of medical doctors in Ireland, is committed to promoting road safety strategies as well as the changes needed to improve public health and to decrease the number and severity of road fatalities in Ireland. In the institutions category, Materská škola - Dénešova, a kindergarten in Slovakia, is committed to teaching children, in partnership with their parents, how to behave safely on the road. In the non-governmental organisations category, ANBO, an independent organisation for seniors in the Netherlands, is committed to promoting safe mobility in educational and recreational activities for the elderly and to provide “senior friendly” best practices in urban infrastructure. In the local and regional authorities category, Ayuntamiento de Verín and Câmera Municipal de Chaves, two municipalities on the border between Spain and Portugal, are committed to carrying out together road safety education courses targeted at different risk groups and to launching a common road safety prevention campaign on both sides of the border. The winners were selected from more than 500 signatories of the Road Safety Charter following an evaluation made by the Commission. During the ceremony 16 additional signatories joined the European Road Safety Charter, mostly major European businesses, such as Axa Group, TNT Post and Iberdrola. (A.By./transl.fl)