REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL Saving Lives: Boosting Car Safety in the EU Reporting on the monitoring and assessment of advanced vehicle safety features, their cost effectiveness and feasibility for the review of the regulations on general vehicle safety and on the protection of pedestrians and other vulnerable road users
Date: 2016-12-12
Institutions: Directorate-General for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs, European Commission
Subjects: bus, commercial vehicle, innovation, motor vehicle, pedestrian, road safety, safety device, safety standard, technical standard, transport accident

EN 

   EN 

   EUROPEAN COMMISSION  Brussels, 12.12.2016  COM(2016) 787 final   REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL Saving Lives: Boosting Car Safety in the EU Reporting on the monitoring and assessment of advanced vehicle safety features, their cost effectiveness and feasibility for the review of the regulations on general vehicle safety and on the protection of pedestrians and other vulnerable road users {SWD(2016) 431 final}  
 
 
REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND 
THE COUNCIL 

Saving Lives: Boosting Car Safety in the EU 

Reporting on the monitoring and assessment of advanced vehicle safety features, their 
cost effectiveness and feasibility for the review of the regulations on general vehicle 
safety and on the protection of pedestrians and other vulnerable road users 

1. 

INTRODUCTION 

Road safety in the EU has improved significantly over the past decades, thanks to strong and 
effective action taken at EU, national and local level to address road user behaviour, vehicles 
and infrastructure. As a result the EU roads are the safest world-wide. This increased safety 
can  to  a  large  extent  be  attributed  to  EU  legislative  requirements  on  safety  of  vehicles  that 
have been introduced over these years as part of the EU policy on road safety1. 

These vehicle safety requirements were also a boost to European research, development and 
innovation: when industry was faced with more ambitious requirements it found the ways to 
respond with innovative technical solutions. Given that the EU was the first mover in most of 
these  requirements,  most  solutions  were  developed  in  Europe  and  quality  jobs  were  created 
here to respond to the challenges. In fact the motor vehicle industry is the main provider of 
private R&D in the EU, and has been setting the standards globally. 

The automotive industry continues to innovate and the regulatory requirements need to be re-
visited, with the aim to  ensure that the EU continues to  be in the fore-front  of international 
developments,  while  continuing  the  work  for  saving  lives.  The  impressive  progress  in  the 
reduction of car accidents has slowed down lately, while the cost of road fatalities and injuries 
is  estimated  to  be  at  least  €100  billion  a  year2  and  hundreds  of  families  continue  to  be 
shattered every year due to road accidents. 

Active safety features and their technological development are leading to gradual automation 
of vehicles. They are considered as key enabling technologies to boost and support the wider 
automation of vehicles, contributing to the digitalisation of the internal market. The EU has, 
in the past, introduced mandatory fitting of electronic stability control systems on all vehicles 
and advanced emergency braking systems and lane departure warning systems on trucks and 
buses, which contribute to the reduction of fatal casualties in traffic by an estimated 5,000 a 
year. The full potential of these and further active safety technologies can only become reality 
with large-scale deployment in vehicles on EU roads. 

1   Ex  post 

evaluation  of 

(2001-2010)  – 
http://ec.europa.eu/transport/facts-fundings/evaluations/doc/2010_road_safety.pdf, Interim evaluation of the 
http://ec.europa.eu/transport/facts-
Policy 
fundings/evaluations/doc/interim-road-safety-evaluation-report-final8june15.pdf 

the  European  Road  Safety  Action  Programme 

orientations 

2011-2020 

safety 

road 

on 

– 

2   http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_IP-16-863_en.htm 

2 

 
 
  
 
  
                                                            
Several  of  these  requirements  also  contributed  to  the  reduction  of  CO2  emissions  and 
therefore to comply with the EU targets on climate action and to the objectives of the energy 
Union.  This was the case for tyre pressure monitoring systems for passenger cars that ensured 
use  with  optimal  tyre  pressures  to  reduce  the  rolling  resistance  and  therefore  reduce  fuel 
consumption. The climate action targets for reducing CO2 in the transport sector also call for 
development of further vehicle technologies that incentivise driving in optimal conditions of 
fuel  economy,  e.g.  through  adaptive  and  intelligent  speed  adaptation  and  expansion  of  tyre 
pressure monitoring to commercial vehicles. 

With increasing levels of vehicle autonomy being a priority for car manufacturers, accurate, 
robust, durable and affordable sensor technologies are becoming widely available. These are 
necessary to fully detect the environment around the vehicle, contributing to safety, especially 
regarding vulnerable road users, and to the reduction of congestion and the ensuing pollution, 
given that 15% of all congestion in Europe is due to accidents3.  

In  this  Report  the  European  Commission  presents  the  findings  of  its  analysis  concerning  a 
range  of  new  safety  measures.  It  proposes  a  way  forward,  with  due  consideration  of  the 
feasibility  and  cost  effectiveness  of  the  proposed  measures.  The  detailed  explanation  of  the 
measures  is  included  in  the  Commission  Staff  Working  Document  annexed  to  this  Report. 
These  are the basis  for a large public debate to which the European Commission invites all 
stakeholders. 

Finally,  as  a  general  framework  the  European  Commission  intends,  with  this  work,  to 
contribute  to  the  priorities  linked  to  growth,  jobs  and  investment  in  the  EU,  promoting  the 
most efficient innovations and retaining quality jobs in Europe, digitalisation  of the internal 
market via the promotion of safety features that are considered the key enabling technologies 
to  boost  and  support  the  wide-scale  automation  of  vehicles  as  well  as  the  Energy  Union 
objectives of reduction of CO2 in transport.  

2. 

INTERPLAY BETWEEN ROAD SAFETY AND VEHICLE TECHNOLOGY  

Since  2009,  transport  accidents  are  no  longer  the  leading  cause  of  death  in  the  European 
Union4. The number of road fatalities in the EU has come down considerably during the last 
13 years, namely with an approximate 53% reduction from 54,300 in 2001 to 25,900 in 20145. 
However,  traffic  accidents  still  affect  hundred  thousands  of  families  and  lead  to  huge 
economic costs each year. As such, the problem of road safety remains an urgent one. Also, 
even though we have seen strong annual reductions, fatality figures appear to stagnate since 
2013. Several Member States are in fact reporting that the number of casualties is on the rise 
again6. 

In  order  to  reach  the  EU  strategic  target  of  halving  the  number  of  road  deaths  from 
approximately 31,000 in 2010 to 15,000 in 20206, as stated in the Policy Orientations on Road 
Safety  2011-20207,  additional  efforts  are  needed  as  it  is  entirely  likely  that  the  target  is  not 
going to be reached. 

3   http://ec.europa.eu/transport/themes/its/road/application_areas/vehicle_safety_systems_en.htm 
4   http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php/Causes_of_death_statistics 
5 
6   http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_IP-16-863_en.htm 
7  COM(2010) 389 final 

http://ec.europa.eu/transport/road_safety/pdf/observatory/trends_figures.pdf 

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On average, a majority of 55% of road fatalities occur on non-urban roads, 38% inside urban 
areas,  whereas  only  about  7%  are  caused  on  motorways.  Pedestrians  and  bicyclists  account 
for 30% of transport fatalities overall, but for almost 43% in urban areas8. These figures give 
a general indication  of the areas of improvement that could be targeted with the revision of 
the General Safety and Pedestrian Safety regulations. 

Experts  have  stated  that  about  95%  of  road  accidents  involve  some  level  of  human  error, 
while  it is  estimated that 75% are caused  by human error alone9. Amongst  the main human 
factor related accident  causes research has  identified excessive speed, distraction and drink-
driving  as  some  of  the  most  important  aspects.  In  line  with  the  Communication  from  the 
Commission  CARS  2020:  for  a strong,  competitive  and  sustainable  European  car  industry10 
and the action plan outlined in in the Commission Communication “Towards a European road 
safety  area:  policy  orientations  on  road  safety  2011-2020”11,  road  safety  should  follow  an 
integrated approach and vehicle safety is only one out of a number of factors that determine 
the outcome. In order to be effective, road safety policy as a whole needs to take the full range 
of factors, such as driver behaviour and road infrastructure, into account and keep a close eye 
on their interplay.  

However,  given  the  relevance  of  vehicle  safety  requirements  among  these  factors,  and 
following the reporting obligations of the General Safety and Pedestrian Safety Regulations, 
the European Commission has started the debate on the priorities for intervention in this area 
and on the evidence-based measures that create a maximum of positive impact overall.  

Specific attention should be given to vulnerable road users as well as vehicle occupants who 
present an intrinsic frailty due to their age, i.e. the elderly12 and young children13. Attention 
should also be  given to the assessment of technologies that exploit  the interactions between 
the  driver,  the  vehicle  and  the  driving  environment,  such  as  Intelligent  Transport  Systems 
(ITS), contributing in this way to the digitalisation trends in the EU, in line with the Digital 
Single Market Strategy. 

3.  SAFETY DUE TO REGULATORY INTERVENTION 

There are clear examples of effective safety requirements already made mandatory in the EU 
such  as  the  provisions  for  passenger  car  frontal  and  side  crash  safety,  as  well  as  pedestrian 
protection, gradually introduced over the last 15 years14. These vehicle safety developments 
were  considered  crucial  as  regards  EU  intervention  contributing  to  the  reduction  of  road 
accidents  and  fatalities/injuries  in  the  last  15  years,  making  the  EU  the  safest  region  in  the 
word in terms of the vehicle safety area15. 

Source: 2002 report of the eSafety Working Group 

8   CARE distribution of fatalities by mode of transport in the EU 2013 
9 
10  COM(2012) 636 final 
11  http://ec.europa.eu/transport/road_safety/pdf/com_20072010_en.pdf 
12   http://ec.europa.eu/transport/road_safety/pdf/studies/eldersafe_final_report.pdf 
13   http://ec.europa.eu/transport/road_safety/specialist/knowledge/pdf/vehicles.pdf 
14   WHO global status report on road safety, 2015, section 3 
15  The evaluation of the EU Policy Orientations on Road Safety 2011-202015 concluded that "the motor vehicle 
safety  legislation,  in  particular,  implemented  before  2011  is  likely  to  be  making  a  large  contribution  to 
reductions  in  deaths  and  serious  injuries  in  all  EU  28  countries  in  the  current  target  period.  This  area  of 
activity  is  by  far  the  most  efficient  and  effective  of  all  Commission  road  safety  activities,  adds  the  most 
value  to  what  can  be  achieved  by  Member  States"  -  http://ec.europa.eu/transport/road_safety/pdf/ 
study_final_report_february_2015_final.pdf 

4 

 
 
                                                            
Specifically in order to protect pedestrians and other vulnerable road users such as bicyclists, 
a set of comprehensive requirements have been introduced and phased in for light passenger 
cars  from  2005  to  2013,  and  are  phased  in  for  heavy  cars  and  vans  since  2011  to  2019. 
Comparison of the EU situation in 2013 with that of 2004 as regards the number of fatalities 
of  pedestrians  and  bicyclists,  demonstrates  a  37%  and  32%  reduction  of  fatalities 
respectively16. 

The General Safety Regulation has introduced mandatory driver safety belt reminder, ISOFIX 
connectors to safely install child seats in cars and tyre-pressure monitoring to prevent car tyre 
blow-outs  that  can  lead  to  loss  of  control.  Lane  departure  warning  and  autonomous 
emergency  braking  were  made  mandatory  for  new  trucks  and  buses  and  electronic  stability 
control  systems  and  daytime  running  lamps  were  introduced  for  all  motor-vehicles.  These 
recent measures were phased in just between 2011 and 2015. It is therefore noted that, given 
the still relatively low market penetration of the technologies used, a detailed assessment of 
their effectiveness could not yet be carried out. 

4.  MONITORING OF ADVANCED VEHICLE SAFETY MEASURES  

In accordance with the General Safety Regulation17 and the Pedestrian Safety Regulation18 the 
Commission has to monitor and report to the European Parliament and Council on technical 
developments  in  the  field  of  enhanced  passive  safety  requirements,  the  consideration  and 
possible  inclusion  of  new  and  enhanced  safety  features  as  well  as  enhanced  active  safety 
technologies. The commitments are laid down in Article 17 of the General Safety Regulation 
and Article 12 of the Pedestrian Protection Regulation. 

4.1.  NEW TECHNOLOGIES AND UNREGULATED MEASURES 

In  order to meet the monitoring and reporting objective, the Commission set out in 2014 to 
launch  the  study  assessing  Benefit  and  Feasibility  of  a  Range  of  New  Technologies  and 
Unregulated Measures in the fields of Vehicle Occupant Safety and Protection of Vulnerable 
Road  Users  in  the  context  of  the  General  Safety  and  Pedestrian  Safety  Regulations,  which 
was published in the EU Bookshop in March 201519. 

Both  the  preparation  of  the  study’s  terms  of  reference  by  the  Commission  as  well  as  the 
detailed information and input during the course of the analysis work that was subsequently 
carried  out  on  behalf  of  the  Commission,  have  benefited  greatly  from  intensive  stakeholder 
interactions  and  consultations.  It  was  also  intensively  discussed  with  authorities  of  Member 
States and international partners prior to completion. 

The Commission wanted to ensure that the information was compiled and provided with the 
aim  to  enable  prioritisation  of  possible  future  safety  measures.  To  achieve  this,  the  study 
provides  an  overview  of  feasibility  and  cost-benefit  assessment  of  a  wide  range  of  55 
candidate measures for possible inclusion in the revised General Safety and Pedestrian Safety 
Regulations.  The  outputs  of  the  study  are  indicative  cost-benefits  provided  in  order  to 

16   CARE percentage change in number of fatalities by mode of transport 2013 
17  OJ L 200, 31.07.2009, p. 1 
18  OJ L 35, 4.2.2009, p. 1 
19   http://bookshop.europa.eu/en/benefit-and-feasibility-of-a-range-of-new-technologies-and-unregulated-

measures-in-the-field-of-vehicle-occupant-safety-and-protection-of-vulnerable-road-users-
pbNB0714108/;pgid=Iq1Ekni0.1lSR0OOK4MycO9B0000BAJ9tQVy;sid=OT_-Ap3uO3P-
V8j2wGFgpf_Lm_yCUpo9P-w= 

5 

 
 
                                                            
differentiate those measures that are very likely, moderately likely or very unlikely to provide 
a benefit consistent with the cost of implementation. 

In  the  context  of  this  Commission  Report,  the  preliminary  assessment  of  enhanced  safety 
features  has  been  further  elaborated  and  has  been  transformed  into  a  list  with  specific 
selection of measures that  could be both cost effective and feasible. These measures include 
the  introduction  of  active  systems  such  as  automatic  emergency  braking  systems  and  active 
lane keeping technology, enhancement of passive safety features such as seat belt reminders 
on all seats, as well as improved pedestrian cushioning in case of head impacts onto the front 
of  cars  and  bicyclist  detection  in  case  of  imminent  collision.  Other  areas  of  high  interest 
concern the improvement of direct vision and elimination of blind spots on trucks to protect 
vulnerable  road  users.  A  comprehensive  overview  is  given  in  section  5  and  all  details  are 
provided in the Staff Working Document accompanying this Report.  

4.2.  VOLUNTARY FITMENT 

Consumer car assessment and rating programmes, such as the European New Car Assessment 
Programme (Euro NCAP)20, have encouraged vehicle manufacturers to develop vehicles that 
are safer than required by the EU vehicle safety legislation and to fit state-of-the-art advanced 
safety technologies to an extensive portion of their models on the market. It is without a doubt 
that these efforts are also contributing to the high level of safety on EU roads. 

However,  whereas  manufacturers  in  general  would  strive  to  obtain  the  highest  possible  star 
rating for their top selling models in key Member State markets, there are indications that not 
all countries receive an equal distribution of high-ranked cars in their respective markets. In 
some  cases  specific  low-ranked  models  are  specifically  targeted  for  certain  (less  affluent) 
markets and not available in the others. In other cases the normally high-ranked models will 
actually  perform  less  well  in  real  life,  because  they  are  stripped  of  the  non-mandatory 
advanced safety features in specific countries, for instance for reasons of cost reduction linked 
to  local  taxation  policies.  This  common  practice  can  be  explained  because  of  the  (up  to 
recently) used rating scheme rule that not all, but only a majority of rated cars sold should be 
fitted with a given safety feature21.  

As a result of the above, there are clear indications that not all EU citizens have access to cars 
with an equal high level of safety depending on the internal policies and allocation strategies 
of vehicle manufacturers and their importers, notably in what regards the purchase power of 
the  consumers  in  a  specific  market,  leading  to  the  situation  that  one  out  of  every  five  cars 
bought does not necessarily have the advanced safety features on board which the star rating 
would  imply.  Still,  many  of  the  features  promoted  by  the  rating  programmes  are 
commonplace and, due to economies of scale, their cost should have fallen considerably over 
the past years. Making these features mandatory could help making the protection levels more 
even. 

20   Euro NCAP is a voluntary European car safety performance assessment program  backed by the European 
Commission and several European governments, as well as by motoring and consumer organisations. Euro 
NCAP publishes safety reports on new cars, awarding ‘star ratings’ based on the performance of the vehicles 
in  a  variety  of  crash  tests,  including  front,  side  and  pole  impacts,  and  impacts  with  pedestrians.  The  top 
rating is five stars. 

21   http://www.euroncap.com/en/about-euro-ncap/how-to-read-the-stars 

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4.3.  ASSESSMENT OF PRESENT SAFETY BASELINE AND FUTURE FOCUS 

To allow for a more ambitious and harmonised safety  situation in  the whole of the EU, the 
review  of  EU  vehicle  safety  regulations  should  assess  the  safety  features  envisaged  for 
possible  mandatory  inclusion  to  achieve  an  improvement  of  the  level  of  safety  of  vehicles 
towards  the  level  that  is  consistent  with  the  current  baseline  offered  by  mainstream  best-
selling cars in the EU. 

Regarding commercial vehicles and buses, the situation also requires attention. Whereas for 
passenger cars the focus is on the protection of the occupants and on protection of pedestrians 
and  other  vulnerable  road  users,  this  is  not  always  evident  for  the  other  vehicle  categories. 
Although elementary safety features such as general construction integrity and safety belts, as 
well as autonomous braking and lane departure warning systems are now required, relatively 
little attention has been given to further promote and improve the levels of safety offered by 
these vehicles. This is in conflict with a need to better protect the occupants of such vehicles 
given their still significant share of casualties, and to protect bicyclists and pedestrians that are 
increasingly involved in accidents leading to severe injuries and deaths in EU cities22. 

4.4.  FURTHER STUDIES TO BE CARRIED OUT IN THE FIELD OF VEHICLE SAFETY 

In light of regulatory actions in other regions of the world, notably that of the USA and Japan, 
the  Commission  deems  it  appropriate  to  initiate  studies  to  investigate  the  specific  accident 
types  that  are  addressed  in  those  regions  with  the  aim  to  confirm  whether  or  not  similar 
occurrences in the EU needs attention. Such studies are to obtain an up-to-date overview for 
the EU situation and to identify countermeasures that may need to be taken. These accidents 
could concern frontal crashes, side crashes, roll-over accidents and rear crashes, notably with 
a focus on the effects due to the proliferation of SUVs with higher centres of gravity, higher 
masses and aggressive front-end design, linked to injuries to diverse and vulnerable occupants 
as well as to vehicle fires resulting from crashes. A list of proposed studies is included in the 
attached Commission Staff Working Document. 

4.5.  NEED TO IMPROVE AVAILABILITY OF EU-WIDE IN DEPTH ACCIDENT DATA 

For every person killed in traffic crashes, many more suffer serious injuries with life-changing 
consequences. The serious injuries are not only more common but also often more costly to 
the society because of long-time rehabilitation and healthcare needs. 

Central  to  the  strategy  of  casualty  reduction  is  the  requirement  for  good  quality  in  depth 
accident  data.  Such  data  is  seen  as  a  fundamental  pre-requisite  for  the  formulation  and 
monitoring of road safety policy in the EU. Data is needed to assess the performance of road 
and  vehicle  safety  and  to  support  the  development  of  further  actions.  It  has  already  been 
identified  many  years  ago  that  no  single  accident  database  available  in  the  EU  so  far  could 
meet  all  the  needs  and  that  there  are  major  gaps,  including  regarding  in  depth  accident  and 
injury causation23. 

As from 2015, Member States started to report for the first time data on serious injuries based 
on the international MAIS3+ trauma scale (Maximum Abbreviated Injury Score) applying to 
seriously injured.  This  is an important step in  the right  direction. However, there is need  to 

22   CARE distribution of fatalities by mode of transport in the EU 2013 vs 2011 
23   ETSC (2001) 

7 

 
 
                                                            
debate the need  to  deploy an  initiative that  starts collecting EU-wide  in  depth  accident data 
that can be used for policy-making in the area of road safety. 

Further  revisions  of  vehicle  safety  rules,  as  well  as  any  other  road  safety  measures,  would 
benefit from a wider availability of accurate EU-wide in depth accident data. 

5.  KEY  ISSUES  TO  BE  ADDRESSED  IN  THE  REVIEW  AND  POSSIBLE  UPDATE  OF  THE 

REGULATIONS 

Four main areas of action have been identified consisting of 19 specific measures to increase 
vehicle  safety.  At  this  stage,  based on  our  analysis  as  highlighted  in  section  4.1.  above,  the 
selected  measures  indeed  appear  to  be  feasible  and  cost-effective  but  should  be  subject  to 
further studies. To carefully assess whether this is the case or not, they should in a next step 
be  subject  to  further  debate  with  stakeholders  and  further  analysis  by  the  Commission,  in 
order  to  eventually  arrive  at  an  irrefutable  assessment  of  their  impact  to  indeed  boost  EU 
vehicle safety. 

A  concise  overview  of  the  targeted  measures  is  provided  in  the  main  vehicle  safety  areas 
outlined below. 

5.1.  ACTIVE SAFETY MEASURES 

This main area covers measures that have the ability to avoid accidents altogether rather than 
to  mitigate  their  outcome  and  is  generally  considered  the  most  important  area  of  future 
vehicle safety legislative advancement. The safety features covered are: automatic emergency 
braking,  intelligent  speed  adaptation,  lane  keep  assistance  and  driver  drowsiness  and 
distraction monitoring. 

5.2.  PASSIVE SAFETY MEASURES 

This area covers accident mitigation measures consisting of introduction of new requirements 
or  enhancing  of  existing  measures  in  the  field  of:  emergency  braking  display  (flashing  stop 
lamps), seat belt reminder, frontal crash testing, side crash testing, rear crash testing, alcohol 
interlock  device  interface  standardisation,  crash  event  data  recorder  and  tyre  pressure 
monitoring. 

5.3.  TRUCKS AND BUSES 

The  measures  under  consideration  to  improve  the  safety  of  trucks  and  buses  are  the 
introduction  or  improvement  of:  front-end  design  and  direct  vision,  truck  and  trailer  rear 
underrun protection (rear bumper), lateral protection (side guards) and fire safety for buses. 

5.4.  PEDESTRIAN AND CYCLIST SAFETY 

Finally,  this  area  foresees  the  introduction  of  pedestrian  and  cyclist  detection  (linked  to 
automatic  emergency  braking  systems),  head  impact  protection  on  A-pillars  and  front 
windscreen, as well as reversing (backing up) detection of persons behind vehicles. 

6.  CONCLUSIONS 

Vehicle safety rules in force in the European Union today consist of a comprehensive package 
with proven effectiveness and track record, as highlighted above in section 3. The action plan 

8 

 
 
outlined in in the Commission Communication “Towards a European road safety area: policy 
orientations  on  road  safety  2011-2020”24  covers  extensive  aspects  that  impact  road  safety, 
notably  vehicles  themselves,  but  also  driver  behaviour  and  road  infrastructure.  The  interim 
evaluation of this policy25 confirmed the important and very substantial progress in reducing 
road deaths. The study also concluded that motor vehicle legislation is in fact a critical area in 
terms of impact on the reduction of casualties. 

This Report to the European Parliament and the Council provides a comprehensive overview 
and  proposes  a  way  forward  as  regards  improved  vehicle  safety  for  the  benefit  of  all  road 
users,  that  is  to  say,  all  citizens  of  the  European  Union.  The  Commission  has  reviewed 
measures  with  potential  to  provide  incremental  but  significant  improvements  to  address  a 
range of vehicle safety related issues. The Commission will consider which of these might be 
brought  forward  in  legislation  following  appropriate  impact  assessments  of  the  costs  and 
benefits  including  consideration  to  the  cumulative  impact  on  the  competitiveness  of  the  EU 
industry and a reasonable time-line allowing industrial adaptation. 

Any  new  requirements  on  safety  of  vehicles  for  European  roads  should  spur  further 
innovation and investment to create quality jobs in the EU and bolster the competitiveness of 
EU  industries.  They  should  also  reinforce  the  Union’s  commitment  to  deliver  robust 
reductions in greenhouse gas emissions as part of the strategy to combat climate change. 

24    http://ec.europa.eu/transport/road_safety/pdf/com_20072010_en.pdf 
25    COM(2015) 116 final  

9