Skip to main content

ERF reveals policy priorities planned

The ERF has unveiled its strategic research priorities for road safety for Horizon 2020, the European Commission’s next multi-year framework programme for transport research and innovation. The ERF’s research road map identifies six priority areas that it believes can contribute towards reducing fatalities by 50% compared to 2010 levels. More specifically, it urges policy makers to devote research to key areas including adapting infrastructure to meet the challenges of 21st century traffic, developing alter
May 21, 2013 Read time: 2 mins
The ERF has unveiled its strategic research priorities for road safety for Horizon 2020, the 2465 European Commission’s next multi-year framework programme for transport research and innovation. The ERF’s research road map identifies six priority areas that it believes can contribute towards reducing fatalities by 50% compared to 2010 levels. More specifically, it urges policy makers to devote research to key areas including adapting infrastructure to meet the challenges of 21st century traffic, developing alternative tools for financing and maintaining roads and planning more cost-effective road operation and maintenance methods. The also include listing in-depth statistics into the causality of accidents, plans for infrastructure and vulnerable road users and wider deployment and harmonisation of ITS solutions.

This move is being made in particular with a view to improving Europe’s road safety as a priority. The ERF points out that despite progress achieved during the last 10 years in Europe, around 90 people/day are killed each day in crashes while another 25,000/day are injured. Safety research has played a key role in cutting the fatality rate by 43% during the last European Road Safety Action Programme which ran from 2001-2010. But further research will be required and the new European Road Safety Programme 2011-2020 (ERSAP 2011-2020) has set a target of reducing casualties by a further 50%. However the ERF points out that this will require additional co-operation to achieve.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Need for defined work zone safety regulations
    April 12, 2012
    Christophe Nicodème, ERF's Director General, explores a missing link in the road safety chain Road works are an essential part of the work of public administrations and toll operators; aimed at preserving a safe road infrastructure for users, while minimising the disruption caused as a result of unavoidable traffic interventions. Given the essential role of road works, one would assume that well-defined regulations exist at national and European level to determine the best way of conducting them. Yet
  • Road deaths continue to fall in many countries
    June 4, 2015
    The latest information from IRTAD, the permanent working group on road safety at the International Transport Forum, shows that road deaths are falling in many countries worldwide. There were 42% fewer road deaths in IRTAD countries since 2000. However, strong disparities exist between countries, according to IRTAD’s latest data. In all 70 organisations from 39 countries are members of IRTAD. The 2014 provisional data show that 15 of the IRTAD member countries for which figures are available managed to red
  • ERF Position Paper calls for more road markings to boost road safety
    December 13, 2013
    The European Union Road Federation (ERF) has today launched a Position Paper that makes the case for a more widespread use of road markings on Europe’s roads as a means of increasing road safety and reducing the socio-economic impact of accidents. Entitled ‘Marking the way towards a safer future’, the ERF is calling on EU Member States to establish intervention and maintenance policies to guarantee that road markings on Europe’s road remain visible for road users and, at same time, optimise the interaction
  • IAM and Brake comment on increased UK road crashes
    September 24, 2015
    Both the Institute of Advanced Motorists (IAM) and road safety charity Brake have expressed serious concern over official figures showing increased road deaths in the UK. The Department of Transport’s Reported Road Casualties Great Britain: 2014 Annual Report says there were 1,775 reported road deaths in 2014, an increase of 4% compared with 2013. The IAM has called for a raft of measures to reverse the disappointing increase in numbers of people killed and injured on UK roads. It added the number of people