Part 3 – A Directive supported by all stakeholders

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The European Parliament has called for this Directive:

• In its June 2005 resolution on the European Road Safety Action Programme, the European Parliament:
  
  “Regards a framework directive on safe infrastructure management as a useful tool for implementing the systems approach to road safety; considers that such a directive should establish which operational procedures are required at the design, construction and operational stages of new and existing roads to ensure that they meet all safety standards, encourage national programmes to remedy high accident risk road sections […] and contribute to setting up expert networks enabling "best in Europe" approaches to safe road design and management; stresses that the Member States should systematically take account of the safety of all drivers (of motorcycles, bicycles, heavy vehicles , etc.) and of accident prevention when designing and building roads;”
• The European Parliament’s Transport Committee vote on 5 June 2007 was not the result of a serious examination of the Directive. Only one amendment (in favour of rejecting the Directive) was examined and carried by the slimmest possible majority (19 votes to 18).

The European Commission has undertaken adequate consultation steps:

• In April and May 2006, the European Commission launched a public consultation on their approach to road infrastructure safety management. Comments were received from national governments, research institutes and safety experts, health, transport and road safety organisations, users associations and road operator associations (http://ec.europa.eu/transport/roadsafety/infrastructure/safety_mgnt_en.htm).
• The overwhelming majority of the comments welcome the approach envisaged by the Commission, to leave Member States free to adopt own legislation on a set of mandatory procedures. Furthermore, the stakeholder consultation did not generate any compelling argument to change the overall approach.

Member States have endorsed infrastructure safety measures:

• Highlights of the 2nd Verona declaration (26 Oct. 2004): “The Ministers of the EU member states, candidate countries and the EEA and EFTA countries highlight the need to develop a widespread improvement of the safety of the European road network. The following measures appear to be promising […] identify roads with the highest number of victims of road accidents, […] Include road safety audit and impact assessment as well as road safety criteria in any investment”.
• Highlights of the Austrian Presidency Transport Council conclusions on road safety (8-9 June 2006): “The Council of the European Union agrees on the need to strengthen road safety measures, in particular […] measures concerning road infrastructure safety should be further improved taking into account best practices and the need to meet the specificities of each situation”.

Stakeholders have unanimously called for the Directive

On 22 May 2006, a platform of road users, network managers and other safety specialists explicitly called for a Directive (http://www.erf.be/content/general/detail/2828)

“Numerous deaths and serious injuries on our roads will be prevented if the European Union lives up to its political, moral and legal obligation of providing guidance to ensure safety is integrated in all phases of road planning, design, construction, operation & maintenance through costeffective road management practices

Europe has reached a crossroads as it considers new ways of tackling its unacceptably high levels of road deaths. Key decisions on how to build a new road and where to affect maintenance funds are all too often made without a clear understanding of their safety implications. All categories of road users – motorists, professional drivers, two-wheelers and pedestrians – stand to gain from safer road infrastructure. Above all, Europe’s millions of road users have a right to know to what safety standards their road networks are operated and what action plans are being implemented to eradicate dangerous roads”.

This statement was jointly issued by the Federation Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA), the Federation of European Motorcyclists’ Association (FEMA), the International Road Transport Union (IRU), the European Asphalt Pavement Association (EAPA), the European Union Road Federation (ERF), the International Road Federation (IRF), the European Motorcycle Manufacturers’ Association (ACEM), the European Bitumen Association (Eurobitume), the European Association of Tolled Motorways (ASECAP) and the Confederation of Organisations in Road Transport Enforcement (CORTE).

A crucial component of the EU’s safety targets

• The Proposal for a Directive on Road Infrastructure Safety Management is a crucial component of the integrated approach to road safety and has been on the agenda of the Community’s Road Safety Action Plan since 2003. The effectiveness of other Community measures in road safety will be greatly diminished without an infrastructure component.
• The Proposal comes at a time when many of Europe’s new Member States (whose road safety records are still below the EU average) are looking to the Union for guidance as they are upgrading or constructing their part of the TERN and this partly with EU money.

The proposed Directive is the result of an inter-institutional, inter-stakeholder consensus without which the EU will not reach its stated policy target of halving the number of road-related fatalities by 2010. It is a first step in the right direction, and with continuing involvement of all stakeholders (as propagated in the “Better Regulation” agenda), the road ahead looks promising!

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