Brake responds to news that car industry lobbyists are pushing MEPs to water down road safety measures, with research showing their weakened proposals could result in approximately 1,300 more people being killed on European roads every year.
The European Parliament is currently considering proposals for revision of the General Safety Regulation (a key piece of legislation for vehicle safety), which would see 16 new safety measures mandated on new vehicles. As a package, these measures could prevent 25,000 deaths and 140,700 severe injuries across the EU between 2022 and 2037.
Acea (The European Automobile Manufacturers Association), has been lobbying MEPs to water down proposals by replacing a key safety feature, Intelligent Speed Assistance (ISA) with speed limit information (SLI) technology. Experts who provided the impact assessment have stated that this replacement would mean that approximately 1,300 more people would be killed on our roads every year.
A survey of more than 2000 drivers by Brake and Direct Line found overwhelming support for the European Commission’s landmark proposals to raise minimum vehicle standards, with 9 in 10 drivers agreeing that all new cars should be fitted with the latest lifesaving safety features as standard.
Commenting, Joshua Harris, director of campaigns for Brake said:
“Intelligent Speed Assistance is key to improving road safety – this technology has public support and must be backed by MEPs. The car industry lobby’s own research shows that their watered-down proposals could stop 1,300 lives a year being saved. This callous attempt must be stopped and priority given to people’s safety, not the car industry’s already deep pockets.
“9 in 10 UK drivers support new cars having the latest lifesaving safety features as standard – MEPs must pass this legislation and stop the stagnation in road safety, both in the UK and across Europe.”
