Brussels, 07/09/2011 (Agence Europe) - By 2015 the European Commission wants all new cars sold in Europe to be fitted with the automatic emergency calls system eCall in case of accidents, AFP reports.
The Commission is planning to adopt a recommendation on Thursday 8 September calling on the member states of the European Union to make sure that mobile telephone operators adapt their infrastructure to allow these calls to be made from anywhere, and for them to take priority and be free of charge, like other emergency calls.
In 2005, the Commission and the car industry agreed to develop this system, which automatically calls the European emergency number 112 in the event of a collision, allowing the site of the accident to be located. The Commission planned to add specifications of the technological adaptation of emergency response centres to an existing directive on smart transport systems.
The Commission also wants eCall equipment to be adapted to new models of touring cars and light vehicles from 2015. Originally, the Commission had planned to develop this system in 2009, then put the project back to 2010 initially. The plan is now for the system to be operational throughout the European Union, plus Croatia, Iceland, Norway and Switzerland, by 2015. A majority of EU states (22 out of 27, not including either France or the United Kingdom) have signed a protocol agreement with the Commission committing them to support the swift implementation of the system.
The Commission believes that this system will make it possible to cut rescue intervention times in urban areas by 40% and in rural areas by 50%, save hundreds of lives in Europe every year and reduce the gravity of injuries and trauma in tens of thousands of cases. (L.C./transl.fl)