Brussels, 22/10/2008 (Agence Europe) - After two years of inter-institutional to-ing and fro-ing, the Council, on Monday 20 October, approved (without debate), the agreement passed by the European Parliament on first reading on the draft directive on the management of road infrastructure safety. As adopted, the directive guarantees road infrastructure managers access to guidelines, training and information necessary to ensure the safety of the road network. It sets minimum requirements on assessment of road safety incidents, road safety audits, joint standards for the management of network safety and safety inspections. The directive, which was presented by the Commission in October 2006, seeks to ensure that safety is built into all the stages of planning, design and operation of the roads belonging to the Trans-European Transport Networks (TEN-T). The Commission calculates that this would prevent 7,000 people from being injured and save 600 lives every year. In the text initially put by the Commission, recommendations on road design were made binding. Both the Council and the EP transport committee, however, were unhappy with this and removed it from the proposal (see EUROPE 9461). However, member states will be required to draw up, within three years of the directive's coming into force, guidelines on the management of the safety of their infrastructure. These guidelines will then be published by the Commission. The text also requires member states to draw up a list of those sections of road which claim the greatest number of victims and take measures to remedy the situation. Member states will have two years to transpose the directive. (A.By./transl.rt)