Debate: Road safety
Date: THURSDAY, 13 FEBRUARY 2020
Speaker: Adina-Ioana Vălean
Language: EN

It is our duty to do everything needed to protect the lives and well-being of European citizens. 25 000 people who lose their lives on European roads and 135 000 suffering severe injuries, are numbers which are unacceptable for us and of course we need to do more in terms of action and support. Road safety will therefore be a priority in my mandate and, with your help we can make it a priority for the whole Union.  Let’s not forget though that Europe has made enormous progress in road safety over the last decade. We are the safest region in the world and we have a lot of experience and good practice to share. This is an opportunity for true European leadership. Globally 1.35 million people are dying on the roads every year. In fact, road crashes are the biggest killer of young people worldwide. The global target to reduce road fatalities by 50% - part of the Sustainable Development Goals - is expiring this year, and this target was not and will not be reached.  This must not mean that we are ready to reduce our ambition. Europe needs to be at the forefront of supporting a new ambitious global fatality reduction target and I intend to say this very clearly in Stockholm. The Swedish Minister for Infrastructure intends to present in Stockholm a so-called ‘Stockholm Declaration’, which calls for renewed efforts and a new global target. I very much support this declaration and I hope that it will be adopted as it is planned. The next step will be a resolution at the UN General Assembly. The Commission will also very much support the process leading up to such a resolution, including through our offices in Geneva and in New York. Ultimately, what counts is results.  In Europe, we are implementing the safe system approach, which is a holistic system building cooperation, good governance and shared responsibility. It addresses all areas – infrastructure, vehicles, behaviour and post-crash care.  The Safe System accepts that human error will happen and compensates for it. Drivers and other road users will continue to make mistakes on the road as they do elsewhere, because to err is human and distractions, alcohol and drugs increase the risk of error, but no road user deserves to die because of a mistake.  As you know, the EU transport ministers have unanimously supported our new EU-wide targets to halve the number of fatalities and for the first time serious injuries by 2030, and the Commission has followed up with an ambitious action plan. The first concrete actions have already been taken. Last year, thanks to strong support from the European Parliament, we strengthened the EU rules on both safe infrastructure management and vehicle safety. We’ll continue to promote ambitious legislation in this mandate and I look forward to discuss with you details in the future.  But in the meantime, let us work in partnership which is indeed the essence of the safe system approach to road safety. As legislators you are well equipped to push us all, the Commission, the Member States, industry, NGOs, to deliver on more ambitious targets and of course, to promote ambition in action in our constituencies. Looking ahead, it is clear that mobility is going through profound change. Climate change demands that we reduce emissions, while digitalisation is opening up new opportunities for easier cleaner and safer mobility. As society shifts, so will the focus of road safety. We need to look at new transport trends in towns and cities and what they mean for vulnerable road users, and we need to consider the implications of autonomous vehicles.  We need to drive the change and make sure change does not hamper our zero-victims vision.  I look forward to a good exchange with you this afternoon and I really appreciate the fact that you put this point on the agenda.