WAYS OF IMPROOVING CAR SAFETY IN THE EU TROUGH REGULATION

Abstract

Road safety in the EU has improved significantly over the past decades, thanks
to effective action taken at EU and national level to address road user behaviour,
vehicles and infrastructure. As a result the EU roads are the safest world-wide.
This increased safety can, to a large extent, be attributed to legislative requirements
on safety of vehicles that have been introduced to road safety. The EU has,
in the past, introduced mandatory fitting of electronic stability control systems
on all vehicles and advanced emergency braking systems and lane departure
warning systems on trucks and buses, which contribute to the reduction of fatal
casualties in traffic by an estimated 5,000 a year. The full potential of these and
further active safety technologies can only become reality with large-scale
deployment in vehicles on EU roads. The aim of this paper provides
a comprehensive overview and proposes a way forward as regards improved vehicle
safety for the benefit of all road users, that is to say, all citizens of the European
Union.