Brussels, 28/03/2013 (Agence Europe) - At a conference on road safety organised by the Irish Presidency of the EU Council of Ministers in Dublin on Thursday 28 March, Transport Commissioner Siim Kallas presented the recent European strategy aimed at reducing the number of serious road traffic injuries. This was also an opportunity for Irish Transport Minister Leo Varadkar to launch the third national strategy for safety on Ireland's roads for 2013-2020, a strategy that places emphasis on reducing injuries and the severity of injuries in the case of collision.
Kallas began by saying he was pleased there were fewer road deaths in 2012, in fact 9% fewer than one year earlier. This excellent news, he said, confirms that the European objective of reducing deaths due to road accidents by half by 2020 can be attained. This positive improvement in the number of fatalities, however, must not conceal the fact that serious injuries also result from accidents. “Injuries are often overlooked and are now a major health problem. For every person killed in a road accident, there are an estimated four life-long disabled, 10 serious injuries and 40 slight injuries”, the commissioner opined, also underlining the resulting socio-economic costs, i.e. 2% of Europe's GDP (€250 billion in 2012). That is why the European Commission now wants to ensure that the number of injuries is brought down and, to this end, two weeks ago, the Commission presented a new European strategy on serious road injuries.
During the conference, the commissioner summarised the strategy saying: “By 2014, all countries should be able to collect comparable, reliable and relevant data using the scale's common definition of serious injury” (maximum abbreviated injury scale). On that basis, a European objective for Horizon 2020 may be established. The other key element of the Commission's action plan is to create a better, more systematic and uniform collection of in-depth accident data as injuries are currently misreported or under-reported. The authorities should therefore combine reports from not only police sources but also hospitals to ensure that “a more complete picture emerges”, the commissioner explained.
This European ambition is also a part of the Irish strategy for road safety which was presented by the Irish minister, Varadkar, on the occasion of the conference held by the rotating EU presidency of the Council of Ministers. Over the period 2013-2020, he said, the provisional objective is to reach 30% fewer serious injuries. The minister also pointed out that Ireland wants, with the 140-action strategy, to catch up with the three countries that lead the way when it comes to road safety in Europe. Ireland has already pulled itself up to fifth position in recent years. (MD/transl.jl)