Liikanen eSafety drive moves up a gear

Date: 24/04/03

By Karen Carstens

Erkki Liikanen held talks this week with automotive and telecommunication industry leaders in a bid to make 'eSafety' a reality on Europe's roads.

The Finnish enterprise and information society commissioner hosted the first plenary meeting of the eSafety Forum, gathering some 150 industry representatives and public officials, in Brussels on 22 April.

They adopted recommendations on new road safety technologies such as eCall, an in-vehicle emergency contact system, and to stimulate the environment for 'intelligent transport systems' to flourish.

Other new technologies in the pipeline include adaptive cruise control, which uses tiny sensors that automatically slow a vehicle down if a vehicle in front suddenly brakes, and a device that produces automatic resistance in the steering wheel if a car is about to change lanes when it is dangerous to do so.

"We now need to focus on the deployment of eSafety technologies, systems and solutions - in other words, get eSafety into cars and on the road for the benefit of 375 million European road users," said Liikanen.

"I am confident that the forum's recommendations will lead to concrete actions," he added.

To this end, the Commission aims to present two communications to member states by June: a road safety action plan drawn up by the energy and transport directorate (DG TREN) and one on 'information and communication technologies for intelligent vehicles' produced by Liikanen's directorate.

Louis Schweitzer, president of European automobile association (ACEA) and chief executive of Renault, said: "Our industry will continue its commitment to the work of the forum and to improvements in road safety in general."

The next eSafety forum is set to take place in Madrid on 17 November on the sidelines of the ITS (Intelligent Transport Systems and Services) World Congress.

It will focus on international cooperation, instant traffic and travel information, research and development priorities and electronic road-map imaging.

"We are trying to generate momentum behind and galvanise industry efforts," said Liikanen's spokesman Per Haugaard.

"Key people who have leverage in the industry are behind this," he added. "So we are very optimistic."

Erkki Liikanen held talks on 22 April 2003 with automotive and telecommunication industry leaders in a bid to make 'eSafety' a reality on Europe's roads.