European Road Safety Charter Vilnius, October 23 rd, 2007 Aude Delesalle E R S Charter Coordinator

Road Accidents are affecting everyone Traffic accidents are the first cause of death amongst people under 45. In Europe, approximately deaths occur annually as a result of traffic accidents. About a third of all road accidents involve somebody who is working at the time.

Road Safety, a common problem In 2001, there were more than fatalities on European roads as a result of road accidents. To face the problem, The Directorate-General for Energy and Transport (DG TREN) put forward the Road Safety Action Plan expressed in the White Paper on European Transport Policy aiming at saving lives per year by In 2006, lives had been saved each year in the EU.

Road safety, a common solution The DG TREN has created the European Road Safety Charter to provide a network where ideas and solutions can be produced at a European level.

The European road safety Charter The ERSC was presented in 2004 in Dublin, during a meeting of the European Union Transport Ministers. Its two main lines are: It is an initiative of the European Commission, specifically the DG TREN. It is a platform of information and exchange to promote actions and solutions on road safety taken at any level and in any member states.

Charter Objective The same as the European Action plan: saving lives, by halving the number of annual deaths until the year Thereby: Ensuring the awareness of the RS situation Promoting RS initiatives in Europe Sharing experience on RS across Europe

An innovative initiative It is a community building tool aiming at gathering in a common platform road safety initiatives from the 27 member states. The Charter is for all kinds of entities: Companies Associations and federations Cities and regions Institutions Other groups of civil society It is not necessary to be an expert in road safety in order to join the ERSC.

Commitments A commitment is an engagement to implement an action plan aimed at increasing road safety. It must: Go beyond the legal requirements Be specific and concrete Be within the sphere of responsibility of the entity Contribute directly or indirectly to reducing deaths on our roads As a general rule, it should be planned for the next 3 years Be comprised in one of the following fields: - user behaviour - professional transport - vehicle safety - infrastructure safety - accidentology

The process of signing – how does it work? (part 1) The steps to sign up are the following: - Fill up on–line the application form - Contact the Charter Team who can give advice on the process Muntaner Barcelona Tel.: Fax:

The process of signing – how does it work? (part 2) - Your commitment is sent to the EC Evaluation Committee and officially approved. At that point, an entity becomes a Charter signatory. - You will receive your personalized Charter Kit and have your commitment published on the European Road safety Charter website:

Benefits for the Signatory The actions are officially acknowledged by the EC and published on the European Commission’s website with links to the signatories own websites. The signatory: Can use the European Road Safety Charter logo. Will receive a plaque and a diploma detailing their actions. Will be invited to participate in a unique forum of exchanging good practices.

Evaluation The signatories accept to assess and share the results of their actions. They send a progress report to the EC, in accordance with the confidentiality rules. The report is published on line.

Occupational Safety The European Road Safety Charter is viewed by many of its signatories as part of their Corporate Social Responsibility plans. Employers’ responsibility The costs for the companies The benefits of a road safety plan Action plans Some of the commitments orientated towards occupational safety: PricewaterhouseCoopers, Johnson&Johnson, Henkel Hungary, DHL Austria,…

Charter Community The network is composed of 910 signatories and will reach 1000 by the end of Charter signatories have a unique opportunity to exchange their experience by participating in workshops, events and conferences. All the signatories are eligible to win the yearly Excellence in Road Safety Award. The Commissioner Mr Jacques Barrot and new Charter signatories at the Excellence in Road Safety Awards in Brussels, November 2007

Some of the European signatories Policie Ceské republiky STATOIL Latvija IKEA Johnson & Johnson POLIS/Eurocities TNT Europe City of Amsterdam UITP (International Union of Public Transport) Philips Automotive Lighting Carlsberg Danmark A/ Suomen Taksiliitto

European Road Safety Charter in Short The European Road Safety Charter is a platform of good practices in road safety All member entities can join the community and get European recognition for their road safety actions By participating in the European Road Safety Charter you will help saving lives in Europe.