Brussels, 04/12/2014 (Agence Europe) - March 2018 has finally been set as the date for the introduction of the automatic accident emergency call. MEPs on the internal market committee (IMCO) ratified an inter-institutional agreement reached on the subject on 3 December (30 votes in favour, 1 against, with 2 abstentions).
In just over two years' time, all new cars will have to be equipped with this system that seeks to save lives during car accidents by reducing the time emergency services arrive at the scene of an accident, by half. The service will be free and MEPs are also determined to guarantee private data protection. Only information relating to the category of vehicle, fuel used, the time of the accident and where it happened, will be sent to the emergency call centres when calling the emergency number 112. This data cannot be transferred to third parties and can be erased manually if the user so wishes. The agreement leaves the door open to equipping all kinds of vehicles with the eCall at a later date.
The technology has been at an appropriate level for a long time but the legislative initiative to make this system compulsory throughout Europe lagged behind. It is therefore a victory for the European Transport Safety Council, which regretted, however, the years that had been unreasonably lost but which would finally see cars equipped with the eCall.
The agreement still needs to be formally ratified by the Council and through a plenary vote at the European Parliament (probably in March). Another legislative initiative had already been ratified at the beginning of the year to ensure that the infrastructure for receiving these calls was in place. (MD)