Brussels, 13/05/2011 (Agence Europe) - According to a new survey published on Tuesday 10 May by the European Transport Safety Council (ETSC), 169,000 pedestrians, cyclists and motor-cyclists (taken all combined) died on European roads over the first decade (2001-2009) following adoption by the EU of objectives to reduce the number of road deaths. The association is therefore working in the context of the Decade of Action for Road Safety, launched by the United Nations General Assembly on Wednesday 11 May.
UN action aims to “stabilise and then reduce the forecast level of road traffic fatalities around the world by 2020” and to support the efforts of the EU which hopes to reduce by half the number of road deaths by the same date. Some 1.2 million people in the world die on the roads each year. A further 20-50 million are injured, the UN states. It considers that, by 2030, injuries caused by road accidents will be the fifth cause of mortality at world level.
In particular, in Europe, data is just as alarming for vulnerable road users, ETSC notes. Despite the priority that the European Commission grants to motorcycle users and to cyclists and pedestrians, in guidelines for road safety last year (see EUROPE 10235), little was proposed to tackle the risks facing these groups, the ETSC executive directive, Antonio Avenoso, states in a press release. According to the association, there are effective and inexpensive measures able to reduce the number of vulnerable road users killed, such as the compulsory wearing of helmets or fluorescent jackets. For cyclists, helmets are compulsory, without exemption, in Ireland only. Eight other member states (Czech Republic, Estonia, Finland, Slovenia, Slovakia, Spain and Sweden) have decided to make it compulsory to wear a helmet for some groups of cyclists depending on their age and the place where they are using roads (in non-urban zones). France, Hungary, Italy, Lithuania and Malta have made it compulsory for cyclists to wear fluorescent jackets. This obligation is, however, only valid at night or in areas outside towns.
Some progress has been made, especially with a view to protecting pedestrians and cyclists. In 2009, among these two groups of road users, the number of victims fell by 34% compared to 2001. The most significant progress was noted in Portugal, Sweden, Belgium or Latvia. The number of motorcyclists killed in accidents, on the other hand, fell during the same period by only 18% throughout the EU. In 13 EU member states, the number of motorcyclists who died on the road has increased compared to 2001, especially in Romania (from 12 to 186 in 2009) and in Poland (+54% to 358 in 2009), the association states. (A.By./transl.jl)