The Council of the Global Networks of Road Safety Legislators has called on all parliaments to take measures for strengthening road safety. This appeal was contained in a manifesto published on Monday 8 May during the fourth UN Global Road Safety Week.
The Manifesto #4Roadsafety document includes ten recommendations to help reach the United Nations and European Union target set for this area – a 50% reduction in the number of fatal road accidents by 2020.
MEPs are also calling for a United Nations road safety fund to be set up, as well as for road safety programmes to be included in sustainable transport policies.
Manifesto signatories include two MEPs, Dieter-Lebrecht Koch (EPP, Germany), the vice president of the transport and tourism committee and Olga Sehnalová (S&D, Czech Republic).
Dudley Curtis is in charge of communications at the European Transport Safety Council (ETSC). and said that he supported this manifesto. He also informed us that “It is important, particularly within the context of the United Nations targets but it is also a wake-up call for Europe, which is traditionally a leader and the area of road safety, not to sit back on its laurels”.
It should be recalled that the EU is committed to fighting for better road safety and supports the Valletta Declaration adopted on 29 March last (see EUROPE 11757), which seeks to reduce the number of fatal accidents in the EU (26,100 in 2015). (Original version in French by Lucas Tripoteau)