Brussels, 22/12/2000 (Agence Europe) - The European Commission has agreed to give the automobile industry six months in which to conclude a negotiated agreement on manufacturing and testing standards in order to reduce risks to pedestrians in the event of frontal collision. During this time, the Commission's "industry" services will continue to prepare a draft directive, to be presented in June 2001 if no negotiated agreement is found by then (see EUROPE of 20 December, p.14). The "negotiated solution" with industry should provide a "satisfactory level of protection", said Per Haugaard, spokesman for Industry Commissioner Erkki Liikanen. "The level of protection should under no circumstances be reduced, whatever the resulting solution, be it negotiated or binding", insisted the spokesman, adding that the "agreement with industry would allow time to be gained as it would be directly applicable, while a directive would not be so before 2008". The negotiations that have been underway for the past ten years under pressure from consumer representative associations and road victims, mainly stumble over the use of a series of EEVC (European Experimental Vehicles Committee) tests, which European automobile manufacturers do not consider valid. "The proposals by the industry are not at present sufficient, and protection must be at least close to the EEVC tests", added Per Haugaard.
The Commission will, in parallel, seek to obtain a "commitment" from the automobile industry so that it develops research and technological applications allowing for "active protection" against accidents between road vehicles and pedestrians, "for example, radar systems or systems allowing night vision to be improved", explains the spokesman.
The European Transport Safety Council, representing road victims, which is carrying out an intensive lobbying campaign for the rapid adoption of a binding legislation, protested against these further delays. "We find it difficult to understand or to accept that, after so much time, a Commissioner is still serious about calling for more negotiation on an issue as serious as public safety".